Love in Dream
by CarlvonSchwann
Summary: If you were given a chance, will you break the barrier that sets you far away from an idol?
1. Smile Bright (Kousaka Honoka)

I stepped down of my throne of fame just for one single girl.

Hokou Furikana here. I am 17 years old and still feeling the youth, even in my second year! Not just that; I could say I'm pretty handsome! I just am. I am king of my school! I am the perfection of my district! Perfect brown hair, shiny gold eyes, and perfect nose and lips! Perfect height of 6 feet, perfect build? I got them, too!

I've attracted hundreds of women from my level. Who can blame me? Good looks, the brains, athletic prowess; everything is just how I feel as perfect! Huh, I've even heard of my teachers gossiping about my looks! How cool is that?!

Huh, not just that, but my attractiveness also reached the neighboring schools! I almost felt like a superstar right then and there!

Again, I'm the king of my school. Though, it's just in my school; in fact, my "King" act was just a facade of my other self. When I'm out of it, I'm this introverted guy who locks himself in his room, sits in a corner, and looks at the one poster of the girl he admires. Lame, isn't it? Wait 'till you hear that this person he admires is a school idol, Kousaka Honoka.

You see, Honoka is just my next door neighbor. The start of living with her was so annoying; she yells so loud, even if it was early in the morning. She was my personal "alarm clock", though she wasn't aware of it. Screw "every morning"; I say it's "all the time". She disturbs everything I do, just by shouting. My studies, my gaming, my watching, my reading; she annoys me to the core, just with that shout. She worries about everything; from her academics, to that Japanese shop her family runs. With that annoying habit of hers, I was sure she would build a bad reputation among her neighbors.

Though as time went by, slowly but surely did she become famous. So famous that the schools around her love her. Couldn't blame it. Even though that habit of hers was annoying, her neighbors saw her as a lively student who is currently enjoying her high school life. But besides that fact, she was part of this group, μ's.

In that group, her voice was melodious; angelic, even. Her dancing was in perfect sync with her fellow members. Even though she sometimes wasn't in the center if the team, she was the one who stood out the most. Her vigorous voice brings the people's attention not just to the group, but to her. I could point out that they call this ability "charisma".

She was the only one I couldn't have for myself, even with my school-wide reputation as king. Look at her. The group she leads ranks high in the table. She can attract people towards her just by singing.

What I was staring at was a poster of her posing along with eight other members. She stood at the center; the reason why I kept that poster there. Her looks were on par with mine, if I do say so myself; in fact, hers might be far greater.

It's currently a Saturday morning, and I was taking my time studying for my midterms. I was finishing my notes, and understanding various terms and equations. It took little effort to do so, and thus it took me a few minutes to get the lesson. I closed my textbook with the notes between it.

I sighed as I stood up and approached my laptop. I stuck the plug of my headphones to the side and opened the laptop. I opened a website and saw a video of μ's. I've been watching their most recent song: "Dancing Stars on Me!". I played the video and watched attentively.

The song was lively, and their costumes were well-made. They had wonderful solos, and were really amazing as their voices unified in the chorus. But the voice I was focused on was Honoka's. Her face was just as lively as the song she was singing. If only she could go out with me on a date.

I unconsciously typed in some letters in the comment box beside the playing video, and accidentally pressed enter before I could properly read what I typed. Turns out I had typed in all of what I thought while watching the video. I widened my eyes as I realized that I have posted such a straightforward comment.

 _Ah! Sht, this is embarrassing!_ I thought among myself. _I... can't delete my comment now... They must've received the notification already. Ah, what should I do?_

I started to breath shakily as replies to my comment said that it would be next to impossible that I would get to date the leader of μ's. Some posted hate comments and insults, and some were just telling me to just get out of the life of the group.

I was about to close my laptop and sulk in a corner when I heard a notification that I have received an e-mail. I opened my laptop again, and checked what the mail was. I wasn't familiar of the address, but it said:

"Hokou-kun... wasn't it? I read your comment on [Dancing Stars on Me!]. Thanks for that sweet comment! As for the last message, I kind of wanna answer your feelings. Meet me tomorrow at nine in the maid café. Inside should we talk about your feelings.

Don't worry! I won't bite! Just... come in your casual clothes, okay? We don't want anyone to know you're out with a school idol, don't we? Eh he he... Well then, expecting you soon!

By the way, I'm giving you my address so that we can keep in touch!

\- Honoka Kousaka"

I read the sender of the message, and blinked a few times before realizing the truth in it. It was real. I was honestly surprised that it was Honaka Kousaka! The school idol! Accepting my proposal for a date! Believe it or not, I had tears of everlasting joy flowing from my eyes.

I jumped multiple times in my bed and hid my face in a pillow just to mute my shouts. It was just so exciting and thrilling. I was going to be on a date with Kousaka Honoka the school idol! Any fan would kill just to get my spot!

A Sunday, five in the early morning. The exact time I was up. The truth is, I couldn't sleep last night. It was a busy that night, considering what I had to say to her on the day I would confess. I was too focused on the problem that I was deprived off of sleep, and all I could do was a three-hour nap. I stretched my arms out and yawned as I got out of bed. I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes and went downstairs to shower. After showering, I picked my clothes out from my drawer, and wore them. A red tartan-patterned polo shirt and a black tee underneath, along with blue jeans and sneakers. I also prepared my sling bag full of the things I needed to please her; money, pen, paper, and that note I used if I ever forgot to say something important.

I realized that was prepared too early, so I decided to watch some music videos before I leave, which was set at half past six. I still have more than one hour left, so I spent it all on watching music videos. They were my favorite escapes from reality, after all.

I walked out of the house and passed by Honoka's. Just at the right time, she went out of it. Talk about coincidence! She was wearing a blue blouse with a peach-colored jacket over it, along with a red pleated skirt and brown boots.

"Ah! Furikana-san! Rarely do I see you going outside of your house!" she greeted and laughed heartily. "So, where would you be going?"

"Ummm..." I stuttered, because I didn't know what to say. "I-I was... I was..."

"Ah-re? Do you know where you're supposed to go?" Honoka wondered, shocking me.

"N-No! I know where I was heading for! A maid café in Akiba..." I admitted, but added, "to meet a friend, that is!"

"Oh, this is the work of coincidence!" she exclaimed. "I'm supposed to go there, too! Shall we head there together?"

"Ah, th-then..." I stuttered again, but regained my breath. "Let's go!" But before I could walk forward, I felt a drop of water on the tip if my nose. Then, it started to slowly pour rain.

"Ah, what a pain..." I said. "And I was looking forward to it..."

"It's no problem!" Honoka assured. "As long as it doesn't really pour, it's not canceled! Let's run!" Honoka took my hand and ran as fast as she could. She was yelling on the way, but was happy as she ran. My hand was tightly trapped in hers, but I wasn't really dragged around.

In a few minutes, we reached a bus stop heading for Akiba. We rode it, paid the fare, and started looking for a vacant seat, but there was only one.

"I'll stand," I immediately decided.

"Y-You sure? If so, then if you'll excuse me..." she obliged, and sat down. I hold on to the railing of the train, as the rest of the people were sitting down. Headed for Akiba, the bus started moving. "While we're on the way, tell me about this friend of yours! I think I'm interested in that person," Honoka suddenly spoke.

"... I-If you say so..." I agreed anyway and started with, "It's a girl, actually. When I first met her, she was this super annoying and noisy person, who knows nothing but worry for something. But one day, I saw her singing, and this part of me wanted to be friends with her. So we did."

"Ah, great story!" Honoka commented. "The person I'm meeting with is a fan; a boy, actually."

My eyes widened at the first description. I don't know if I was sure, but I was confident it was me.

"He commented nice things to my group's songs, and yesterday asked me out on a date. So now, I'm going there to tell him what I feel."

"Wh-what will you say to him once you talk about it?" I asked out of the blue.

"I... was thinking about rejecting him properly," she answered nervously, and those words pierced through my heart.

I knew something like this was coming, but hearing it from a third person's point of view hurt more. Well, it was predicted, so I had nothing to argue with that. I was, after all, just a fan.

"But... I'm too nervous to say that to him," she continued. "What if he doesn't like my songs anymore? What if he'll blackmail me after? What if-"

"Then shout at the top of your lungs," I advised.

"... Huh?" Honoka sounded, uncertain of the words I said.

"Shout at the top of your lungs," I repeated, smiling this time. "Your shouts were annoying, because you do so all the time. Morning, afternoon, evening. I can hear your loud voice ringing in my ears. I realized that you were shouting out of frustration, out of worry. Why not do it?"

"... You're right," Honoka agreed, nodding her head once. "I've gotta let out all of the unnecessary feelings I've got inside before I get to face him. Yeah, I'll do that! Thanks, Furikana-kun!" She faced me, giggled, and smiled. It was... a cute look on her face. And for the first time, Honoka smiled at me for real. I wanted to deny that smile and think that this is all a dream, but it was too real to be denied. I mean, it's school idol Honoka Kousaka, smiling at me personally!

The bus then stopped all so suddenly that I lurched forward to inertia.

"Sorry, everybody," the driver said. "The tires became flat all of a sudden. It might take me about half an hour to repair it, but it's your choice to stay or not."

"Eh?!" I whined, and looked at the clock. It was already eight thirty in the morning. Thirty minutes before the date! With the repair time, both of us won't make it in time. "We can't wait in this bus! Let's charge through the rain, Honoka!" I suggested, and offered a hand.

"... Sure," Honoka agreed and took my hand, and then we stepped out into the rain. We sprinted as I looked around the area for shelter. I found a temple nearby, so we decided it would be the one we take in. We ran up the stairs, but I was getting tired. I stopped shortly to catch my breath, but Honoka kept running, and was now the one leading me. We continued running until we reached the top, but we didn't stop there; we went inside the temple to finally end the run.

Inside, we sat down, leaned on the wall and caught our breaths. Despite the rain that made us wet, I was sure I was sweating, though I felt the cold more. My legs almost failed me, but I was glad we reached the temple.

"Hey..." I suddenly called, "are we gonna stay here and wait for the rain to clear up?"

"Yeah, I think we should," Honoka agreed, and I relaxed my shoulders in relief.

"How about our clothes, then?" I asked again. "... Hey, Honoka. I'm gonna leave you and find a towel. Stay put, okay?" I stood up and ran, but cried in pain as a sprain suddenly came up on my right foot. I crashed on the wooden floor as a result.

"Furikana-kun!" Honoka called and approached me. "I'm getting the towels. You stay put and rest. We'll get that foot fixed, too."

"O-okay..." I gave in, and crawled towards the nearest wall, then I leaned on it. I waited for minutes until Honoka came back with a pair of fresh towels.

"Here you go," Honoka called and handed me one. "I've also found some spare clothes from the shrine maidens, so help yourself with them! Hee hee!" She chuckled and handed me a set, and I accepted it anyway. "And we shouldn't forget about that sprain of yours." She neared me and brought out a roller bandage. "Here, let me wrap it up." She then started treating my foot.

When it was done, she sighed in relief and gave me a thumbs up.

"Thanks, Honoka-san..." I told her.

"No problem at all, Furikana-kun!" she assured, and smiled at me. "Ah-ra, I remember. We shouldn't let the rain dry in our skin, or we will catch colds! So I've decided to let you change first! I'll be outside, so take you time-" Before she was about to leave, I reached for her hand. "Eh?"

"H-Honoka-san, I'm the one who should be letting you change first," I confronted. "As a man, I have this policy. Please, don't mind my sprain, or anything for that matter. Just let me let you change first."

"... Ah," Honoka sounded before finally saying that she agrees, though she was reluctant. I crawled out of the room and left her there so that she can change.

I had my own business to attend to, so I took my top clothes off and dried myself before putting the new clothes on. It was a plain blue t-shirt, but it was enough size for me to breathe in.

I realized that I have slept when I just woke up. I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes and looked around. The rain has stopped. I was still sitting on the shrine entrance, while a weight was pressing my left shoulder. I looked at it and saw Honoka sleeping soundly. She was also wearing the same tee I had, but she had a change of bottoms too. It was a long red pleated skirt.

Of course, I blushed at the sight, but she honestly looked beautiful while sleeping. Usually, I would see her with bed hair and yawning like no one was around. But this time, she was sleeping in perfect peace.

She slowly woke up, yawned like usual, and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes before looking around. She saw me looking at her and unconsciously greated, "Good morning, Furikana-kun..."

"Ah, Honoka-san," I greeted back. "Good mor-" I almost replied back, before I realized the time. I sat there stiff like a board while Honoka was stretching.

"Wow, that was a nice nap we had there, huh…?" Honoka said, seemingly relaxed about everything, not even noticing the time. "Ah, it's almost time for my date. Let's go, Furikana-kun?" she offered, her voice totally lazy.

"It's already past noon, Honoka-san..." I informed, laughing softly.

"... EH?!" she exclaimed, finally gaining full consciousness. "That's past the meeting time! Let's hurry, Furikana-kun! We must've kept them waiting for long!" And then she ran ahead, leaving me behind.

"O-oi, Honoka-san! Wait for me!" I called and ran along with her. I slid down the middle railing of every set of steps just to skip them. I was finally at the bottom of the stair with Honoka running with the same speed. We both ran out way to Akiba, since it was just a few kilometers away. Running was the only thing we did until we reached the maid café we were supposed to go. We entered the café and sat on a four-person table, as we told the waitress that it was a "double date".

 _We're here..._ I thought. _Must be time to admit it..._

"We're here! ... Though, the others aren't here yet..." Honoka breathily announced. "Let's place our orders before anything else!"

"U-ummm... Honoka-san..." I called softly. "I wanna say something..."

"What are you waiting for? Aren't you supposed to wait for your friend? King Hokou-kun?"

I was surprised by what she called me. Suddenly calling me by my first name was just like the time I received her e-mail yesterday. And not just that; she called me King. I was not from Otonokizaka Academy, but how come she knew of that title?

"E-eh…?" I suddenly sounded.

"I knew everything from the start, you know?" she informed me. "From the time I saw you in your casual clothes this morning, I knew it you who posted that comment. You know, even if you were a king-slash-shut-in, I've always known you. To confess, I had those shouts all your life just to get your attention, my worries coming in second. I stopped it when I had something new to worry about: μ's."

"You're right... you've lessened those shouts ever since you've created that group," I commented.

"But let's be honest; you've liked my voice ever since [START:DASH!], didn't you?" Honoka teased and laughed like a little kid.

"Yes, I did," I straightforwardly answered, a smile plastered on my face. "Every single song. As long you were in it, I'd be happy to listen. That's what I'm thinking of right now."

"Thanks, thanks," Honoka said, and giggled a bit, but her smile was slowly fading. "But let's get to the point. I've... seen your comment on that video. I appreciate your feelings, Hokou-kun. I really do. The other girls were kind of jealous when they read that comment. But the first emotion I felt was... worry. I couldn't help myself from thinking about the possibilities. Decision-making was so hard that I had to ask help from the others. Then I came with the most appropriate decision, and I haven't changed my mind since then. It was to kindly and properly reject those feelings."

"Yeah, I expected that," I told her as a single tear flowed from my left eye. "I-I mean... y-you're a school idol! Idols are su-supposed to... be forbidden from deeper acquaintances than friendship, right?"

"Th-that's not it, Hokou-kun! I-" Honoka denied, tears about to flow from her eyes, but I continued anyway.

"You have so many fans, right? Some of them would kill just to be in my place. It was short but worth my time meeting my one and only idol. You... Honoka Kousaka, the leader of μ's. You're that one and only. But I think that idol is a distant star far away and out of my reach."

"... I'm glad you understand my status, but you shouldn't be treating yourself so low about it!" Honoka confronted. "We can always meet! We're... We're neighbors, right? We follow the same path to school. We go home at almost the same time. Isn't that all the worthwhile? You can still-"

"Thanks for worrying about me, Honoka-san," I cut her off and gently placed a hand on her right shoulder. "You don't need to pressure youself and force it. I'm not gonna blackmail you, nor will I hate your songs. I'm a diehard fan, after all. I'll support you from the back row, okay? Just remember my name, and I'm fine."

She sniffed, and tears were continuously flowing from her eyes, but she eventually agreed. "Sure," she said, and smiled with the same sad expression. "Forever."

"I've... had a nice time with you, Honoka-san. I made the right choice, out of nine members," I admitted. "I'll be going home now. Thanks for spending your precious time on me, Honoka-san. No... Kousaka-san. See you again." I removed my hand from her shoulder and went on my way, my head bowed to hide my face from such shameful tears I showed her.

I kept on walking until I crossed a bridge. Perfect timing, rain heavily poured down. My jacket was in my sling bag, but I didn't bother bringing it out. T'was a waste, since it just dried recently.

"Kousaka-san..." I muttered as I clenched both my teeth and fists, all out of pure guilt. She was the only person in mind. I couldn't help it. My tears kept flowing down until I started sniffing too.

Ah, what a clichéd way to end a date.

I spent the other weeks deprived off going out of my house. It was a doctor's suggestion, considering I came home that day as the rain dried on my clothes. I soon had a really bad cold, thus my deprivation. To be honest, deprivation was too strong; "rest" should be enough. Yeah, rest was all I needed. I stayed in bed for a few weeks until I recovered.

A winter day... a near-Christmas like no other. But I somehow wanted to spend it attending a concert. I exited my house in a thick fur coat, black tee, red scarf, brown mittens, jeans, and winter boots.

These past few months, I kept my King act to hide my depression. I distracted myself for a while by entertaining the girls around me. For now, I wanted to stay off of it.

I walked slowly and had my hands buried in the pockets of my coat. My thoughts were elsewhere, but I knew where I was headed: the stage of the final preliminaries of Love Live. I made it early, so I got to watch up front. After a few hours, the competition started. First competitor was μ's.

I saw all of them before me, wearing white winter costumes. They were all beautiful, I must admit. But the one I'm most focused on was on Honoka. She was the same as I saw her in her videos. It has been a while since I've watched some.

The music started playing, to which they started dancing. Then came the singing, which was melodious as always. But I was also focusing on the lyrics. And then I realized... it was a bit about the relationship between Honoka and me. Soon after, I've made eye contact with Honoka. We returned each other's gazes, and I saw Honoka's immediate sad expression. She sang her solo, but tears were building in her eyes.

I listened until the end, and waited for them to finish. When they did, I left immediately. I didn't want to hear any more from the other groups. I was voting for μ's right away, just like I have promised. I walked away with tears building up in my eyes. Before they could flow any longer, I ran as fast as I could, but I stopped when I heard commotion onstage. I turned around and saw Honoka on her knees and covering her face. I knew immediately that she was crying. Her friends comforted her, but she kept crying. I clenched my teeth and fists before getting hold of myself and ran away as fast as I could.

I left the grounds towards the academy I used to attend. I kept on walking and walking until I came upon the rooftop. The fence was around the perimeter, but all of what I saw there were a few fallen leaves. I walked towards the fence, held on it, and shouted at the empty open field before me.

"I love you, Kousaka Honoka!" I yelled as loud as my vocal chords could do me. "I love you so much, it hurts when I see you! I'm sorry, but- but…! I still do have feelings for you! I'm sorry! I'm sorry..." I apologized as frequent as I could until my knees failed themselves, and I ended up kneeling before the school entrance while banging on the fence. But in the end, I let out my hidden feelings. Just like Honoka and only Honoka was supposed to do. It seemed like I was advising myself to do it, huh…?

I've been in too much misery that I remembered my strained foot. I was bandaged regularly and treated every day, but the pain just wouldn't go away. I clutched my foot and shouted out the pain it's been causing. I rolled over and leaned on the fence while I was pressing my foot. The pain subsided, but I sweated in the cold.

I thought it would have been nice to lie in there and think about what happened in the past months, but I wanted to do something better. Something better than just sitting around and shouting out my feelings like a brokenhearted teenager in love.

Maybe I could transfer to a new school and show them my true colors. Maybe I can just drop my "King" act and just live the boring life. Maybe I could... Maybe I could...

There were so many options I could go through. There were so many! Yet... I couldn't do them. The way I was right now was because of someone so precious.

Kousaka Honoka.

I wanted to remember that new song they sang. The first official love song that μ's sang. The song that hit me the hardest the first time I heard it. The song which has stopped time all around me.

The winter season, the season of my first heartbreak. The first time I felt heaven. If I were to name the heartache I felt that time, it would be [Snow Halation].

I've made my decision, and a new year has started.

I chose to stick to my education, and there I would graduate from high school. I decided to show my true introvert self, and since then, all of them stayed away from me. All of the girls that were too clingy to me before now treated me like trash.

Of course, I continued my studies like I was supposed to be, and became a teacher's pet like before.

At the end of the day, I would walk home with a quiet atmosphere around me. No one walked with me, no one to talk with, no one to flirt with anymore.

It was new to me, but I should get used to this. I chose this path, after all.

I would enter my own house with an unchanging expression. I'd drop my bag on the door and remove my jacket. I'd remove my shoes and silently continue walking. There was no one to say "I'm back" to, after all.

I'd walk up the stairs and to my room, where my books and laptop laid. All of what I needed in a single room.

I'd sit on my study table and prepare my materials. I'd open my laptop, open the books beside me, and research on the content of the book.

Reading boring articles and checking random websites, I thought I was gonna fall sleep in a few minutes when...

"HOKOU-KUUUN!" a strong but girly voice called out from outside. I practically jumped in surprise, because I never would have thought someone would call me. I put aside my laptop and looked out my window. I was surprised to see such a presence in front of my house.

Honoka stood there, still in her school uniform. She was still cupping her hands around her open mouth when I saw her.

"Hono- Kousaka-san..." I hesitantly answered her call. "Wh-What do you need...?"

"LET ME IN!" she shouted as loud as she could.

I blasted back when I heard it, as if a strong wind came through my window. I stood up as abruptly as I could as I raced towards the main door. I opened it and to my surprise, Honoka rushed in and kissed me.

My mind blew the moment our lips made contact. Kissing my own crush, Kousaka Honoka... Kissing a school idol, Kousaka Honoka. It seemed like a dream, but if it was, I was glad I lived alone. No one would forcibly wake me up, not even Honoka.

She pulled away and gripped my shoulders. Her face was as it always is, and... Oh my Kami-sama, I've been longing to see that smile again. That wide and happiness-inducing smile.

But that didn't help me recover from the sudden kiss. "E-Eh…?" I sounded, still feeling dizzy.

"Hokou-kun," Honoka called. "It might be selfish of me to say this but... can I make you mine?"

My ears must have had walls built inside them, as to not hear what Honoka just said. "Ko-Kousaka...-san…?"

"I'm telling you, go out with me!"

 _... go out with me...!_

 _Was that... a confession, just now...? My brain isn't slow as to not misinterpret that, right? I'm not dreaming, right? This is certainly a dream! No way would Kousaka Honoka kiss me and then confess like it was simple, right?_

And Honoka slapped me across the face, just like that.

"Wake up, Hokou-kun! You're not sleeping while standing up, right?!" Honoka shouted.

That's right... I'm not dreaming... That means... Honoka really does want to go out with me?!

"A-Are you... sure about that?" I asked. "Wh-What about your fans…?"

"I can handle them!" Honoka proudly answered.

"In what way?" I interrogated.

"... I'll think about it, somehow... Teehee!" Honoka said.

"This is a big risk, Honoka! What if they find out about this?! What about that idol group you're leading?!"

"... I'll figure it out," Honoka answered the same way.

"HONOKA! You're a school idol! Why some commoner like me?! Why would you pick me, anyway?!"

"Because I love you!"

Again, I couldn't process what I heard. She loves me? She better not be using a recorder on me. Because I am taking this seriously.

And yet again, I was slapped across the face. Now two of my cheeks were red.

"HOKOU-KUN! My feelings are true here. I love you, Hokou-kun. When I saw you watching the concert last year, I realized... I love you. I regretted rejecting your feelings. I couldn't deny it anymore. Why? Because you appreciated what I did, even after I doubted them all. Because you were open with your feelings. Because you were the first to actually accept and agree with my ideals. Because... You're you."

"Ho-Honoka-san..." I called softly. I was blushing hard. My cheeks were redder than the slap marks Honoka left on them. Her sudden confession left me speechless. I had no guts to say why I loved her, but she took her courage with her and gave me, a no one, a reason to love her.

I lost control of myself and fell over my own two feet. I landed on the floor and laid there to try and comfort my own body.

"Hokou-kun?! Are you okay?!" Honoka panicked and ran over to my aid. She knelt over me and placed both her hands on either side of my head.

"Ch-Chance," I suddenly said and smiled before reaching out to grab her nape and pull her for a kiss.

I did it successfully, and we were there in the open entrance with our lips in contact. I smiled to this, and I was sure Honoka was smiling too.

We pulled away, and I saw that smile again. A smile she gave passion making. Her smile gave others around her happiness. I was one of them.

"So I take that kiss right now as a yes?" Honoka asked still smiling.

"You bet," I answered, and smiled back.

Just being there staring at Honoka, I thought maybe staying like that was fine. It's risk taker, school idol, Kousaka Honoka, after all.


	2. Ice Princess (Ayase Eli)

She's my childhood friend-turned-ice princess.

Kise Nimura. 18 years old, third year high school. Blonde hair. Brown eyes. Normal face. Normal build. Normal height. Everything is quite normal about me. I don't know why I see myself that way, but I've always told myself that I was normal.

I might have seemed like a normal boy when I was ten, I come from a royal blood of Russians, though I'm one-half, as my mother was Russian. I don't always speak Japanese, so I've always had a fellow part-Russian friend to translate everything I said to Japanese.

Bad thing was, she transferred to an all-girls school, leaving me in mine, so I was forced to learn Japanese for five years until I became fluent at it. I started talking normally to the people of the country.

I started my third year in a normal way. It was the first time I did, so I was kinda off with my pace. I was living alone in my apartment, and it was my first time experiencing such a thing. I finished every single preparation, and was ready to go out. I exited the room and locked the door, but realized that I was in sync in action with someone else. I faced the person, which had blonde wavy hair tied into a ponytail, and light blue eyes. She was wearing an unfamiliar winter uniform, so I couldn't make out what school she attended. But her face told me everything.

"E-E-Erichika...?!" I stuttered as I raised a finger. "Can that possibly be you...?!" My finger was shaking, but I kept them pointed at her.

"Eh?" Eli sounded, and looked at me. "Wait... K-Kise?! Is that you?!"

"Onee-chan, who is that?" a little girl, tugging on the hem of Eli's skirt, spoke from behind her.

"I don't know, Arisa, but this is where you go ahead first," Eli signaled, and the little girl, who seemed like her sister, nodded and went on her way past me. When she was out of sight, our conversation finally started.

"It's been a long time, Erichi-"

"Don't call me that anymore," Erichika ordered. "I'm not your same old childhood translator, Kise. We've separated ways long time ago, so why not forget about it?"

"Eri- I mean, Eli," I called. "Wait, I just wanted to greet you-"

"Then the feeling's mutual," Erichika cut me off again. "Good morning, Kise. Now, will you move out of my way? I've got student council work to do." She walked past me, and her aura was terrifying that I eventually had to move out of her way. Her glance was prim and proper, but it was cold. Everything in motion was perfection, like she was a full-time role model. I knew she would grow up like this, but it wasn't what I would expect.

This wasn't the Ayase Eli I've always known.

I've always had time to go on my way to school, but it took me a long time to actually move. I jogged my way to school... which was found on the same path as Eli walks. As the fact follows, it seemed like I was following her until her school, Otonokizaka. That was when Eli finally confronted me.

"For how long are you going to follow me? Aren't you supposed to stay in that foreign school?" Eli shouted.

"... I don't study in that school anymore," I argued. "I just happened to attend a school near yours, so it just so happened that I had to follow your path. Do you have a problem with it?"

"... If that was all, then I have no more arguments with it," she concluded the misunderstanding and walked on without the light going green. A car was about to hit her when...

"Wait, Eli!" I called, and before she was about to get hit, I got hold of her arm and pulled her off the road. The car sped by, which surprised Eli greatly. She stumbled and ended up in my arms.

We stayed silent for a while, and no one talked, nor moved. We just stayed there, unaware of each other's condition. That is, before Eli pushed herself away from me.

"Why did you have to save me?" she coldly asked, dusting her clothes after.

"Well, shouldn't I?!" I argued once again, my head filled with anger. "Eli, your life was on the line! If no one had come forward, then you would've died! Did you see that speeding car?! Eli, why are you so naïve?!"

My fury was finished when I finally saw Eli's reaction. She seemed unfazed by everything.

"Then, if you want my thanks, it's yours," she plainly stated. "I owe you my life." And there she was, attempting to walk away from me yet again. But this time did I gather the courage to stop her.

"And you just throw your life sway, just like that?!" I confronted. "Just for how long are you going to keep this up?!"

She turned around and slapped me across the face. With my words, I expected that kind of reaction, but it kind of hurt more than what I was expecting.

"Until you stop annoying the living hell out of me," Eli answered with a breathy voice. It was so unusual of her to sound like that, but then I heard sniffing. I faced her and saw that she was crying. "I know I was too naïve to throw my life away, but do not call my evasiveness as an act. I have a valid reason for all this, and that reason is none of your business. Now, for one last time, if you'll excuse me." She wiped her flowing tears and jogged her way to school, now that the light was green.

I stood there as people stared at me like I was an alien. I ran across the street from too much embarrassment, and headed straight for my school. Good thing I was not late for school, because it would've been more trouble if other people saw me. I entered my classroom and sat on the only vacant seat in the back row.

I hung my bag on the hook on the side of my table. I then got myself ready for the first subject...

... Though I didn't get to learn many things. My brain was in another place, probably thinking about Eli. All my head said was Eli. It brought me great embarrassment, because I got scolded for not listening in class.

This was also the situation these past few days. I never got Eli off my head. I mean, she's changed so drastically. That free girl I've always known is now a trapped bird forced not to mess up.

What happened to the Erichika I've always know when we were children? Before, she was this gentle, carefree, and very warm girl to be with. We used to play together as if no one can separate us. We used to comfort each other when we had some issues with family. We also used to go as far as taking baths together. That was how close we were as childhood friends.

I carried my bag and walked with my feet on autopilot. I never realized that I wasn't looking where I was headed when I bumped into someone. We both fell into the ground, and her things were scattered all over the sidewalk.

"I'm so sorry!" I reacted immediately. "I wasn't focused on where I was walking." I then stood up and picked some of her books for her. When I got all of them, I first lent a hand helped her stand up. She took my hand and stood up, dusting her clothes right after. I took a good look at her and realized that she was...

"Onee-chan's childhood friend?" Arisa asked.

"Eli's little sister, Arisa..." I called. "I remember you from when your sister and I were friends."

"You do?" Arisa suddenly wondered.

"Why of course," I answered. "You were the most cheerful one whenever we played tag or hide-and-seek."

"... I'm afraid I don't remember," Arisa said sadly. "Can you tell me more? Should I treat you a drink?"

"I'd love to," I agreed and nodded, but added, "but I think the drinks should be on me. You're still new to Japan, right?"

"Awww, I wanted to get a touch on the machine..." Arisa pouted.

"Okay," I laughed, "but I choose what you press."

"Agreed!" Arisa nodded, smiled, and ran to the park, where the machine was nearest. I put the money in and told Arisa what I want. She also pressed hers, and we ended up contented with each other's results. We sat on the bench beside it and opened the cans we were holding before sipping on them. I looked at Arisa and saw that she was smiling while having a drink.

"You look like your sister, Arisa," I informed, tearing my gaze off her and looked at the sky.

"I do?" Arisa questioned.

"Of course you do." I looked at Arisa and pat her head. I honestly wanted to tell her the situation between me and Eli, but I didn't want to depress her in anyway, so I made something up. "... You know what? I wanna tell you a story. It's about an ice princess."

"Oooh, tell me, tell me!" Arisa pleaded, clutching my sleeve. "What about this ice princess?"

"This princess is beautiful; in fact, she's the most beautiful in her country," I started. "She was graceful, formal, and she always looks like royalty wherever she goes. But she's cold towards the people she meets, and avoids every conversation they start with her.

"This princess knows of a certain prince, since they are both of royal blood. They got along as children, but now the princess avoids even the prince she always knew, because of reasons she couldn't tell. We don't know the reason up until now, but she might be hiding something from the prince.

"The prince tries to get the princess' attention by chasing her everywhere she goes, and even saved her from danger, but the princess didn't give the prince acknowledgement in the end. 'What should I do?' the prince asks himself, but seems like he has no idea, since he did almost everything. He almost thought that he should just let it slip by and find another girl to love, but the thought of the ice princess intrigued him.

"And that's the end of my story," I concluded, but felt guilty when I ended the story with my own thoughts.

"Oooh, great story, but... there's a problem with the prince," Arisa commented.

"Wh-what might that be?" I asked her in the hopes of getting information. Not that I'm expecting much from a middle school student.

"The prince should be a more determined if he wants the princess to fall in love with him... or at least, get along with him. He should never give up on something or someone he wants; don't you agree? I mean, he gave up too easily just because the princess wanted him to go away."

That's when it hit me. I gave up way too easily. If I wanted to know the reason Eli was pushing me away, I should never give up on finding it.

"Oh, what a great explanation," I commented. "You're good at analyzing people."

"Ha ha, it's one thing I learned from Onee-chan," she informed. "That I should never give up on something I want to achieve. Like my dream to become an idol. A school idol."

"Wh-what's a school idol?" I stuttered, practically clueless on the subject.

"An idol formed inside a school," she said. "Even Otonokizaka, the school Onee-chan attends, has one! They're amazing."

So Eli's aware of this "idol" group? Because if she wasn't, she wouldn't have to tell Arisa about it.

"So what does these school idols do?" I asked.

"Oh, I can tell you lots about them!" Arisa burst out, suddenly showing sheer interest in the conversation. "First of all, idols are-"

"Arisa," someone called, "so this is where you are."

"Oh, Onee-chan!" Arisa turned her back to look at her sister, and I looked after her. Arisa ran towards Eli and gave her hug. "Kise-nii was taking great care of me! And he told me about canned drinks! I can tell the differences between them now!"

"Oh, was he?" Eli said, caressing Arisa's hair. "Now, let's go home." She took hold of Arisa's hand and headed towards their apartment. Before leaving, she gave me a cold gaze.

Seriously, what's her problem with me?

From that day, I went to school in a surprisingly and mysteriously good mood. Nothing ruined my day, nor did anything boost it. I was eager to learn new things, and was pretty more outgoing that the first day. In the end, I made a lot of friends, and got near-perfect grades. Yet my movements and thoughts remained normal.

One night in my apartment while I was rewriting my lecture, someone knocked on my door. I stopped what I was doing and approached the door to see who it was. I opened the door and saw Eli standing before it. She was her uniform, but without the outer polo.

"Good evening... Eli," I agreed quite reluctantly, because it felt awkward to talk to her.

"Let's get to business," she ignored me and brought what looked like present. It was a small box gift-wrapped and with a ribbon on top. She reached it out to me. "Here."

"What could... this be..?" I asked as I reluctantly received the gift.

"A treaty of peace," she answered. "I want to apologize for my cold attitude. I realized that I was acting coldly in front of my childhood friend. So... I want to say... sorry..."

I was speechless, because I for one wouldn't expect Eli to actually apologize first, much less give me a gift for compensation. She was cute while muttering her apology. Too cute that it was unbearable not to laugh. So I practically chuckled.

"Sorry..!" I apologized myself. "It's just too funny to watch. Oh Kami-sama! Thank you that I got to see Erichika like this..."

"I want to end this immediately! So am I forgiven or not?!" Eli confronted, blushing uncontrollably. "I-It's not like I wanted to do this. I just felt like you wouldn't forgive me if I didn't do so any longer. And don't call me that anymore! I thought I told you that already!"

"Still, you did it, right?" My laughter faded, and I wiped my tears of joy. "I can forgive you anytime. After all, you're a childhood friend, right? I wanted to tell you this before, but you were never just a translator to me."

"I know. It's just... I... never mind that. I'm going back inside," Eli said embarrassed, and walked back inside, but I didn't want her to go. I thought of something that just might interest her. For example,

"What do you know about school idols?" I asked.

"Huh?" Eli sounded.

"What do you know about school idols?" I repeated. "I want to know more about these, since I'm quite new to the name."

"Have Arisa explain everything," Eli answered coldly and continued walking, but I pushed the idea.

"You know a lot about them, right?" I confirmed. "I believe you were the one who told Arisa about them, right? I bet you were the one who informed her about your school's group."

"... So Arisa told you, huh..." Eli gave in. "Fine. Just this once." She leaned on the metal railing and looked up at the night sky. "As offensive as this may be to them, these idols are amateurs. To me, at the very least. All they do is dance, sing, and act cute in front of their audience. What's the point in it?"

"I don't know about you, but you seem to have taken an interest in these idols," I commented. "If these idols are so inferior to you, wouldn't you be like, ignoring them like you always do?"

"I am ignoring them, but since my school has one, it's hard not to notice. They're the talk of the school, and they serve the same purpose as I: to save the school."

"From what?"

"The school is to close down if the number of students they receive next year is too low. Of course, the student council wants to save the school, but the chairwoman wouldn't let us. But she let that idol group do it, since it doesn't involve anything like the purpose of saving the school according to her. What's so special about these girls? These idols? I don't get how they'll save the school. They aren't even professional in dancing alone. Why are they doing this, despite sheer inexperience? I don't get it."

"... I see. So these idols serve as celebrities in show business, and therefore can attract people to something. But isn't there something beyond their reason why they want to become idols? Like, they did this because they enjoy it? And you do know practice makes perfect, right? It applied to you in many aspects. Ballet, academics, everything. So do you have the right to criticize them, despite going through everything the same path they're walking?"

"What an absurd reasoning. Doing something because you enjoy it won't get you anywhere. I do what I want because it's a must. I went through ballet because I want to honor my family. Isn't it a better reason than joy?"

"No, it isn't. Sure, it's family honor that brought you to dancing, but I've never seen you dancing with a long face. You always seem to enjoy dancing ballet. Wouldn't that be the same level as what school idols do? In fact, if you teach them your style of dancing, wouldn't they be professionals, and save you off trouble in pleading for permission? Heck, if you merge with them, that group will surely succeed in saving your school. How about it?"

"..." Eli, staring at me, was speechless. Her eyes were wide.

"Think about it... cute and clever Erichika," I said before greeting her a good night and entering my apartment room.

I got to study hard last night and the following weeks that I actually perfected the finals. All of us were surprised when we heard that I did. Some were jealous, some asked me to tutor them, some were amazed, some were happy for me. That was probably the best time I've ever had in school.

I spent the next day like normal, but the thing I was waiting for the most was the outcome of Eli's decision. I decided to pass by her school to see how the open house was doing. Out of the blue, I heard music.

I checked what it was and saw nine girls wearing red fancy clothes and performing on a field. The only one I recognized in the group was Eli. She was dancing with passion and singing beautifully. I was amazed by her performance, and I realized that she was a school idol already.

I smiled to this, because I already saw through her decision. She caught me looking at her, and she smiled at me. She was sweating, but she was happy. It was all that I wanted that day. I've always saw her with that kind of potential.

That afternoon, someone knocked on my door, and I opened it to see Eli. She hugged me on sight; so tight that I couldn't just push myself so easily.

"Thank you," she said. "You helped me through decision-making in just one night. This is why I like you."

"Eh?" I sounded. Those words were new to my ears, especially coming from Eli. "Eli?"

"I've learned a lesson, just from joining that group," she informed me. "I shouldn't lock myself from something I want to do. And that I should be honest with my feelings. That's why I'm telling this to you. I like you. No, I love you."

"What? What have you been eating lately?" I teased with a straight face.

"My attitude has nothing to do with food," Eli argued. "These are my true feelings. I love you, I won't deny that."

"... I love you, too..." I muttered, probably out of surprise. "But you do know idols shouldn't have romantic acquaintances, right?"

"Of course," she confirmed. "We can't be in a relationship, because of this idol thing I'm in now. That is at least, for now. I'll graduate in half a year, and then we'll be together."

"You're pushing the idea too far, Eli," I argued. "But I'll be waiting for you to come back. I mean, if you're still single that time."

"As long as you're single as well, I promise I'll be back," Eli assured. "But in the meanwhile, let's continue our friendship?"

"Sure. Anything for you, Erichika," I agreed. "Oh, I wanna talk to Arisa later. Tell her to pass by my door later, okay?"

"Okay. Ja, I'll be going back to my room. Good day... Kisecchi," she greeted smiling before running back.

It seemed like I forgot something important, because it felt like the first time I've heard her say my nickname. But I smiled and mentally thanked Eli, because I have a new story to tell Arisa. A continuation of the story about the ice princess.

The ice princess who melted in the hands of her prince through music.

Arisa did pass by my room, as I've told Eli to do so.

"Pardon my intrusion," Arisa said as she removed her shoes and entered my room. "So, Kise-nii. Onee-chan told me to come here. What did you need me for?"

"Well, Arisa-chan," I started, "You still remember the story I told you the other day, right?"

"Ummm... Yes, I do remember," Arisa said. "It's about the ice princess, right?"

"I've thought about the perfect ending to it," I told her. "Here's how it goes, for a recap."

I then told her the full story.

"... The princess avoided the prince for a certain period of time, until a certain time. The princess though of giving up on running away from the prince and approached him instead. She offered an apology, and revealed to the prince of what she was avoiding from him: a problem she has been shouldering for quite a while. The prince comforted her and told her exactly what to do to brush away that burden.

"The next day, the princess did what the prince told her to do, and got what she wanted. She ran to the prince and decided to make up with him. They became a married couple and lived happily ever after.

"The end," I concluded, with a teacher-like smile on my face. I looked at Arisa and was surprised to see her so dissatisfied. "Wh-What's wrong?"

"That... was just a story between you and Onee-chan, isn't it?" Arisa asked, her voice emitting a dark accent.

"Ho-How did you know..?" I asked back as I backed away from her.

"I knew it! I'm telling Onee-chan!" Arisa threatened, and ran out of my room back to hers.

I thought of digging my own grave, but Eli would just drag me back to earth and kill me again. I imagined that would happen the moment I heard Eli shout, "Kisecchi!"

"Crap!" I cursed and tried my best to run away from the apartment. But as soon as I was down the stairs, Eli already busted out of her door.

"How dare you tell such things to Arisa?!" she shouted and ran as fast as a beast. I realized that she had a much better athletic prowess than me. She soon lunged at me, and we fell down the stairs, and tumbled on the dry ground. I was under her grasp, and... her... you know... were pressing against my back. I blushed badly, but I tried not to get any thoughts about that and stayed still.

Eli stood up, dusted her hands and grabbed me by my collar before dragging me up the stairs. I cried out sound of pain, but Eli would just ignore it and continue dragging me until we were in her room. She then tossed me to the side of her bed.

She them started the murder by raining so many questions at me, like, "Why would you tell Arisa of our relationship?!", "Why did you give the story a setting which gives people the wrong idea?!", "Did you even give the story some thought?! It's too cliché!"

She kept raining me with questions which slowly became irrelevant with the problem at hand, but I somehow enjoyed it. I ended up smiling to it.

"Oi, are you even listening?!" Eli scolded and leaned forward to be face-to-face with me. I suddenly had an idea, but I had to be careful not to show anyone what i was supposed to do.

"Hey..." I called out. "Arisa's not here, right? No one else is here, right..?"

Eli looked around and faced me once again, still with an angry look on her face. "No one is here! That's why I'm always free to shout at you like-"

"Good," I said, and wrapped my hands around her nape. I pulled her in, and we kissed. Eli had no time to scream, because her lips were already in touch with mine.

"Th-This is..!" Eli stuttered when she saw a certain object I was holding.

"Come on, Erichika," I persisted. "This is professionally made in Russia, so I was confident you'd accept right away. It also cost me an arm and a leg, you know."

"I-I know that much!" Eli argued. "I know what much, but... We haven't even graduated from high school, you know! You of all people should be aware that you're dating a school idol. Are you even prepared to face the responsibility after people find out we went to the extreme?"

"Think of it as a post-graduation gift," I offered, smiling my most encouraging smile.

"Why exactly would you do this in the first place?"

"Because you're too famous already! Men a slowly getting attracted to you! I... don't want them to make you turn your head away from me!"

"But... Isn't an aquamarine ring too obvious for a post-graduation gift?" Eli doubted, but her hands were already itching to receive the gift.

"I assure you, that's okay," I insisted. "The graduation is a few days from now. Love Live already ended, and it should soon end."

"... Funny how you're now the one pushing the idea of us dating," Eli pointed out, a frown on her face.

I sighed seconds after and muttered, "Then... I guess my proposal is still a no-no... It's best to throw this precious ring away. Or maybe give it to that other woman..."

"Stop!" Eli shouted, and reached for my wrist. "I-I'll... I'll accept that gift of yours. Geez, you're so stubborn..." She held out her hand and waited for the ring to be worn.

I picked the ring out of its box and pushed it through Eli's right ring finger. The color fit Eli's eyes- the reason I bought that ring from Russia itself.

"Now that's settled, the story of the ice princess ends perfectly as I imagined," I announced proudly.

"S-So all this was... to make that made-up story true to life...?!" Eli threateningly muttered.

Scared enough from her dark aura, I said, "Oh, right! The ending lacked something, so it's not fully taken from the story itself." I laughed nervously as Eli's dark aura weakened.

"Eh? Something was lacking?" Eli asked.

"This," I answered and pulled her to a kiss. My lips met with hers, and I felt Eli weaken. The kiss itself lasted for a few seconds before I broke the connection myself.

"Wha..?" Eli unconsciously sounded.

"A happily ever after means you gotta kiss! Now it's from the book!" I announced, laughing vigorously.

"You..." Eli threatened, holding up a ready-to-punch fist. "Come here so that I can kill you!"

"That is if you catch me!" I teased as I started running away from her. I was reassured that she would chase me, too. We ended up in the middle of the road, chasing each other as the sun set in front of us.

Ah, what a clichéd ending for a comical story, when it's supposed to be a romantic fairy tale. Oh, well. It's been one hell of a comedic journey down the road of love, so...

And besides, it's Eli. A strict but carefree girl. A proper but child-like girl. A cold personality, but there's her hot, passionate love to melt it away every time.


	3. Imperfect Perfections (Nishikino Maki)

She's imperfect, you hear?! But why does she look so perfect?!

Minoru Rayuki. First year and 16 years old. Born with dark blue hair paired with eyes of the same color. I'm not that tall -I'm about 5"7'-, so I can't boast about it. My build isn't that good, so I can't be proud of it either.

In terms of physical abilities and academics... well, I get average grades with contrasting stamina. I'm quite frail with just a two-kilometer run. Lame, isn't it? I was never the perfect student. That's why I was always not proud of who I was.

Until I met her.

Nishikino Maki. A girl so rich that she studies in a top-rate all-girls school. Near-perfect grades, amazing athletic ability, perfect body. Everything was almost in her.

Thing was, she's a really rude woman. She's mostly an anti-social, so she doesn't quite hang out with people. She gives people these cold gazes and comments rude things about everything she sees. I was one of her victims. She avoids me like I was something lower than a cockroach. Not just that, she also picks on me as if I was a clueless child. You could say it was hate at first sight.

Yes, I admit all of my flaws, but I am certainly not an animal. I have my rights to be treated like a human, just like I've always treated her. It's just that she doesn't return the honor, and it irritates me right to the core.

She's rude, she's an anti-social, she's a show-off, she's irritating, she's a critic, she's mean, she's never my type, she's amazing, she's down-to-earth pretty, she's irresistably cute, she's all-around perfect. Imperfectly perfect, to be precise. This is why I hate her.

I don't remember much, but this is my story; a story of how the cool and rude Nishikino Maki played into the hands of love.

Secretly enough, I was once, and am in the Light Music Club, and I've spent my time in instruments long enough to play them all with ease. I play the flute, violin, piano, trumpet, acoustic guitar, and many others. I was just the average person everybody in school knew, so I decided I find something I could be special in, thus my love for music.

To be honest, we at the Light Music Club don't hold concerts. I figured the other members were too shy to do it. But we still held other activities as a club.

We remained the same until our last year in middle school. Members left the club one by one until two of us were left. Hair so scarlet, purple slanted eyes, lips so perfect, and her fingers were skilled at the piano. We were friends playing classical music together until I heard she quit because her parents told her to take up more on medicine.

Since then, I played music on my own. I composed my own songs until I got the courage to hold my own classical concert on the last day of middle school. Not many students came, but I managed to filled up half of the seats with my skill in the piano.

I was passionately playing the piano even in summer vacation. I somehow performed my own songs at guerilla concerts with the modern keyboard, and I attracted lots of passers-by. Well, it was definitely entertaining, but those guerilla concerts were my way calling that crimson-haired girl back in my presence.

In the end, I failed.

So I waited instead. In complete certainty that she would return, I waited. But her return didn't even pass, so I graduated middle school without her.

I was walking blindly to school when I bumped into someone; a girl, most probably. I fell easily to the ground, while the girl just tripped but her balance with remarkable. I looked up to see the girl whom I bumped into. Just then did I notice the peculiar crimson, shoulder-length hair. Along with purple slanted eyes and teenage features, I could think of the most probable name of the girl.

"Nishikino Maki..." I muttered, with all anger in my voice.

Maki snickered and placed a hand on her hips, adjusting her bag right after. "If it isn't Rayuki. You know, my name shouldn't be the only thing you should burn in your head. Think about studying from time to time. Your grades are worse than the dumbest girl in your class."

"I'm sorry, but could you please move out of the way? If I'm that low to you, then talking to me makes you just as low, right?" I shot. Maki grimaced at my comeback, and I gotta say I should have taken a picture. I mean, she was utterly speechless. I smirked to this and stood up. I dusted my clothes and walked past her without glancing back. That felt awesome. My very first comeback ever since that girl came around.

"Oi, Minoru-kun! Right here!" some of my fellow club members called. I ran to them and talked with them as we walked our way to our own classrooms. All of them were different classes as me, so I didn't have anyone with me in class.

I walked inside mine and sat on my seat, which was in the middle of the front row. I then rested my head on my crossed arms on the table while waiting for our homeroom teacher walked in.

"We have a tranferee joining with us today," our teacher, Fukawa-sensei, announced with a bright face. "She's from Otonokizaka Academy, so I expect all girls get along with her. As for the boys, you can do it." Her cheer has put the boys in a darker mood, unfortunately. "Moving on, here she is! Come on now!" she urged, and the student followed. She walked in, and all the students' spirits were lifted so high. The girls marveled, and the boys went crazy as their moods were lifted all so suddenly. Except me of course, who did the opposite reaction when the girl entered the room. Well, she did the same thing in turn.

Who can blame me? I mean, it's Nishikino Maki!

"What the hell?!" I yelled as I pointed an index finger. "Sensei, is this snobby rich kid really the transferee?!"

"What the hell?!" she yelled after. "Sensei, is this hissy fitty virgin really in this class?!"

"Shut up!" we both yelled at each other after having found out that we've ranted in unison.

"Ah, I believe I can't find any more seats besides the one beside Minoru-kun..."

"Sensei, are you listening?!" me and Maki shouted in unison. "Is this- WHAT?! I'M SITTING BESIDE HIM / SHE'S SITTING BESIDE ME?! No way!"

"... Then there's no helping it. Why don't we have a draw on a new sitting position?" Fukawa-sensei suggested, and the whole class agreed. Must be because everyone wants to have a move on Maki. Gross.

We each took a paper from a shaken box, and it would decide the seat we were in. We were told in advance that we weren't allowed to trade seats or it would be a violation on rules.

We began the raffle, and the results were: Maki in the back-right corner, and...

Me beside her.

Guess what? I got the following items: a frustrated Maki, daggers from the guys' glares, and... a death threat.

This day can't get any worse.

Bad atmosphere, check. Almost everybody holding grudges against me, check. An annoyingly annoying seatmate, check. My head more focused on the whole class than the lesson, check. That was certainly enough to put me in a bad mood.

Well, class has already ended, so I managed to calm myself down and left the room. Thinking my clubmates would be able to calm me down, I rushed to the Light Music Club to meet with them, but my mood became much worse when I entered the room.

Nishikino Maki was present and sitting on a chair like a lady.

"Ah, Minoru-san! Meet our newest member!" presented the president of the club. "Her name is-"

"No need to mention, president," I interrupted, my voice as deep as possible. "I know who she is."

"Then we wouldn't have to worry about the introductions," the president laughed. "How about we show her what we have as the Light Music Club through a performance? Let's start it off with [START:DASH!] by μ's."

All of a sudden, Maki gasped, but regained her posture before we grabbed our instruments. I was the lead vocalist and guitarist for no real reason at all, except for the fact that everyone thinks I was fit for the role. Another held the bass, another for the piano, and another for the drums. We also played background instruments like trumpets and lyres to make the music a bit classical.

The drummer held the signal and hit both brumsticks three times before all of us hit on our instruments. Seconds passed before I took my part.

 _I say_  
 _Hey, hey, hey START:DASH!_  
 _Hey, hey, hey START:DASH!_

 _Ubuge no kotoritachi mo_  
 _Itsuka sora ni habataku_  
 _Ookina tsuyoi tsubasa de tobu_

 _Akirameccha dame na nda_  
 _Sono higa zettai kuru_  
 _Kimi mo kanjiteru yo ne_  
 _Hajimari no kodo_

 _Ashita yo kaware_  
 _Kibou ni kaware_  
 _Mabushii hikari ni terasarete kaware_  
 _START!_

 _Kanashimi ni tozasarete_  
 _Naku dakedo kimi ja nai_  
 _Atsui mune kitto mirai wo_  
 _Kirihiraku hazu sa_

 _Kanashimi ni tozasarete_  
 _Naku dake ja tsumara nai_  
 _Kitto (kitto) kimi no (yume wo)_  
 _Chikara (ima wo) ugosaku chikara_  
 _Shinjitteru yo, dakara start_

 _Hey, hey, hey START:DASH!_  
 _Hey, hey, hey START:DASH!_

We sang the other parts of the song before we finished. The way we ended the song was pretty impressive, if I must say. Maki herself clapped, to which I myself didn't know why.

"You all did a good job on the song," Maki started commenting. "I myself am surprised on how you managed to find μ's despite it being 999th in the list."

"It was Minoru-kun who discovered them," a member admitted for me.

"Minoru, huh..?" Maki looked at me suspiciously, her slanted eyes thinning even more. She immediately recovered from that and continued. "Anyways, the syncing of the trumpet was a bit off, but all in all, I was amazed."

The member -a second year, to be honest- who was holding the trumpet nodded and smiled at Maki. "Thank you, Nishikino-san," the president said. "That might be all for our activities. We might hold a concert for songs soon, you know."

"Oh? What song will you be playing?" Maki asked while resring her cheek on her hand.

"We will choose original compositions within Minoru-kun's list," the president answered. "As a composer and professional songwriter, he's fit to be our lead."

"Ha?!" Maki reacted and slammed her hands on the table before standing up. "Rayuki, a composer and songwriter at the same time?! Obviously a lie! Since when?!"

All of my clubmates were speechless. I'd bet on the fact that she didn't believe what the president said.

"Blowing off steam just because I'm lead?" I confronted. "Nishi-aho Maki, I've been writing songs and lyrics since middle school."

"Ni-Ni-Nishi... aho?!" Maki shouted, grimacing at my nickname for her. "Tch. Whatever." She grabbed her bag and started to leave the room. "If you'll excuse me." She forced the door open and slammed it shut.

My clubmates were staring at me as I looked at each of them, one by one. They were speechless. None of us talked until all of them looked at each other and laughed.

"What..?" I asked, dumbfounded.

"Not a single one of us has seen you this rebellious before," our drummer, still holding his drumsticks, spoke up while his arms were crossed. "I mean, there was not a single one of us could trigger even a bit of anger in you."

"Yeah, I must agree," the president followed while wiping a tear from too much laughing. "This is the first time we've seen you angry, in general. In all times we've seen you, you were calm yet positive."

This Minoru Rayuki? Angry? I won't say it's anger. I'm pretty much _pissed._

I was left alone after a few minutes so that I could focus on composing more songs. I opened the club's piano and removed the cloth covering the keys. I sat down and stretched my hands before wriggling them. I then pressed some keys to test out some possible implicable to the song. If that note was acceptable, I wrote it to my notebook and continued. I had some ideas coming to me, and I somehow finished half of the song, though it took my thirty minutes, so I called it a day and packed up.

As I stood up, I heard the door open and entered Nishikino Maki. I glanced at her, but continued packing.

"Is there anything you might have forgotten?" I asked, my voice as calm as I can force it to.

"N-No, I've never forgotten anything. I just... I... I..." Maki stuttered, and sighed to calm herself. "I want to apologize. Well, it's not like I want to do so, but it's... you know... your clubmates told me to."

"... Hmmm..." I sounded, thinking deeply on how I should react to it. "To be honest, I do think I want you to make up for it."

"... If that's what you want, whatever," Maki answered. "So? What is it?"

"Play the piano with me as we talk," I said. "Maybe that'll make me forgive you."

"... That's all? If so, then I wouldn't mind," Maki gave in and picked up a chair to sit beside me. I sat down myself and told her that we'd play the first six etudes on Chopin.

I played the melody as she did the assist. While we were playing through the song, Maki asked me, "So what did you want to talk about? I'm quite in a hurry, so I'll leave once the song is over."

I asked Maki, "Could it be that you composed the melody of [START:DASH!]?"

Maki paused from playing and faced me before continuing in a rushed pace. "... How did you know?"

"You gasped when Prez told you we were playing the song. And to think you'd tell me that μ's was 999th place first before my clubmates would, told me that you've had connections with them before coming here."

"Oh, so that's what it was," Maki sighed. "You sure are analytical for someone stupid."

"Oh, stop it, will you?" I whined while my fingers were tickling the keys. "But why did you transfer here? You could've been their composer."

"Don't even think of elaborating it," Maki warned. "I'm not into idol-related things. And besides, composing is a pain. Spending hours creating a four-minute song gives me headaches, so I'd rather not sacrifice it for something worthless."

Suddenly, I was laughing. Laughing so hard that my fingers were barely touching the keys.

"That it?" I teased, and stopped playing. "I don't think it's spending too much on a whistle. With songs like [START:DASH!], performing with them could've made you famous."

Maki seemed engorssed. "Wha-?! No way! I won't be acting cute in front of millions. It's too embarrassing. Even if I want to, I can't do it. It's impossible."

"Oh, I have an idea!" I bursted. "Why don't you do a Nico Nico Nii?"

"What on earth is that?!"

"Look at this," I suggested and brought out my phone. I tapped on a video and showed someone with black hair tied into pigtails, along with red eyes. The video started playing and the girl did the phrase "Nico Nico Nii~".

After the video finished, Maki stood up and stepped back. "Wh-what on earth...?!" she stuttered.

"Do it," I dared. "You want to do it, right? Being an idol, I mean."

"Even if I do, I can't do that," she denied.

"Come on," I insisted. "It's training in the least."

"... Fine," Maki gave in and did the pose. "Ni-Nico... Nico Nii-ii~"

"Again," I commanded.

"Whaaat?! Once is already enough!" Maki confronted.

"I mean, your embarrassed face is already cute, but don't you think the person who did went through that same face before getting used to it?" I shot.

Maki didn't speak for a few minutes until she said "... I'll practice, at least... Thank you..." while blushing.

"Ah, you're welcome..." I muttered and looked away as I looked at my wristwatch. "An hour has passed. Aren't you supposed to go home?"

"?! A-ah, I won't mind if you'll insist on letting me stay..." Maki said.

"Will I, now..?" I muttered sneering at Maki before coming up with another decision. "Well, I wouldn't mind if you decide to stay."

"This is why I don't get you sometimes," Maki complained. "... A-Anyways, if you need help on the song you're composing, I wouldn't mind helping..."

"And I wouldn't mind if you decide to help," I shot back, in a teasing manner this time.

"So you don't need my help?!" Maki shouted.

"And you won't be honest with yourself and help?" I was fully teasing Maki by contrasting her sentences. We spent all afternoon arguing, but I had fun teasing her.

Maki does have a flaw. Seeing that flaw made her look cuter.

"... This is a waste of time," Maki whined. "But before I leave... I wanna ask a question..."

"... What could it be?" I asked.

"I-If I do become an idol... will you be my fan..? I mean, you're just singular, so you're not the only one I'll ask this, got it?!"

"Oh..." I sounded, utterly surprised by her question. She was blushing while asking, so I couldn't help but look away and blush myself. "I mean, I can be a fan of yours, if you insisted..." I muttered, trying to hide a little smile.

And it started yet another argument between us.

From that day onward, I went to school in a normal mood, as if the incident yesterday was a product of my imaginative mind. About a week later, I met up with my fellow club members and planned our activities.

"Oh, Minoru-kun," one of my clubmates called. "How was yesterday with Nishikino-san?"

"Eh?! You knew about that?!" I raised my voice, in utter surprise.

"Of course we do!" President said as if I should've expected this one coming. "Walls have ears too, you know?"

"Though in the end, they never get along, huh..? Almost like an imperfect perfection," another member added.

"I know, right?! They're like strawberry and cheese, aren't they?" another agreed.

"Nope. More like tomato and lettuce," yet another one argued.

"Maybe like fire and water," President concluded. "But let's keep it to the point that they don't mix that well, but when mixed together, they make the perfect pair."

"Stop it guys... seriously..." I grumbled as my mood got destroyed by my own comrades.

When I got to enter my room, the first thing I looked at was Maki's empty seat. No one can possibly ignore the fact that the punctual Nishikino Maki was this late in the morning.

Our homeroom teacher came in and told us to sit down so that she can make her important announcement. "Well, Nishikino-san is absent today because she has to attend to something very important. She says she'll be back tomorrow, but for now, let's excuse her and continue with today."

Me and my clubmates had another meeting at our clubroom so that we can view on what to perform at our upcoming concert.

"So it's gonna happen anytime soon, huh..." I muttered and smiled as I skimmed through the compositions I made, then realized something while doing so. "What? I know I prepared seven compositions, but somehow six are here."

"Hmmm, that's strange... And as my memory serves, I think the title of the stolen piece was [Korekara no Someday] or something like that," a member guessed. I widened my eyes as I looked again.

"It's not just what your memory serves... It really is [Korekara no Someday] that was stolen," I concluded. "But who on earth would-?! ..." Then I lowered my head as I've come to an answer.

"Who? I mean, only club members can- ... I think I'm getting your drift, Minoru-kun," a member agreed, and seemed to follow my expression.

"What's the meaning of all this? You don't mean..." the President said in reluctance.

"Yes, she's the only probable person," I confirmed.

"How could she...?!"

"How _dare_ she...?!"

"Well, we can't put all suspicions on her if she- Wait... it all adds up..!" I slowly raised my head along with my voice.

"What do you mean?" President asked.

"You see," I started, "Maki was absent from school today, because she had something important to attend to. Following the stolen piece, she must be using the composition in the next song of μ's."

"What...?! You mean, she literally stole your piece for her own good? She can't be..." President denied as he fell to his knees. Tears started flowing out of his eyes as he fell deeper into misery.

I couldn't blame him. Not only did Maki betray his trust, but she also took important club material.

"Now it's strictly put into copyright, and we can't do that song anymore," I traced the path this result has led us. "Let's just put that song aside and-"

"How dare she?!" a member interrupted. "Such an amazing song in which Minoru-kun put so much effort in, taken that easily?! I... I can't and won't forgive her!"

"Yeah! If they were to do such things, they should've given Mino-san credit for being songwriter and composer! This is stealing original copyright!"

"C-Calm down, guys..!" I attempted. "It's just one song! I can-"

"Even so, you spent hours on it! The song was epic, and now it's thrown into another person's hands!"

"... There's no need to dwell on despair," President chided. "We'll report this to the student council president. That way, she can't get materials from us anymore." So they left together and went for the office. I was left behind staring at the pieces left in the list.

I didn't know what to feel by then, because all was happening while I was helplessly looking at something long lost.

The next morning did I know that Maki already knew about the stolen piece, which was shown in her actions. Homeroom, she didn't even take a glance. During classes, she never bothered picking up her materials which fell on my seat. Lunch, she passed by my table but walked away immediately. Up until dismissal did she not notice me looking at her. I couldn't take it.

Right when she left the classroom, I picked up my materials and chased after her. I ran with all my might just to catch up with Maki. She ran after realizing that I was chasing her. We chased each other until we were almost past the school gates, where Maki tripped on a broken tile. My momentum never decreased, so I bumped into her, and we fell with Maki below me.

Maki was flustered about this as tears started flowing out of her eyes. I on the other hand, was wheezing so hard from all that running. I soon fainted in front of her. Not that much romantic, huh?

I woke up looking at a white ceiling. I looked around and saw five people looking at me, white curtains as their background. I came to realize that this was the infirmary. I focused on the five people, who were suprisingly my clubmates.

"Ah, Minoru-kun, you're awake," President noticed.

"What happened..?" I asked them as I rose from the bed. From dizziness, I was forced to press my forehead.

"... You should ask Nishikino-san," a member, pointing at the infirmary door, indirectly answered. "She brought you here. But you shouldn't-"

"Thank you," I said before finally rising from the bed and stumbling outside. "I'll talk to her."

"Minoru-kun! You can't-!" a member tried to stop me, but someone stopped her. President did.

"Minoru-kun, go for it," President permitted. "I don't understand what kind of relationship you have with her -which has kept us arguing about for hours-, but if you really have the passion to maintain such a relationship, then do whatever the hell you want. You're the leader, after all." He smiled at me and nodded once. "We'll stay here. A member has had overstreched fingers."

"Thank you," I said again and opened the doors.

Waiting for me beside the door was none other than Maki. She was leaning on the wall and her legs were folded on her stomach. She sobbed while clenching her teeth. Something must've happened while I was unconscious, because it wasn't like her to cry for so long.

"... Can't be helped, right..?" I could hear her mutter. "I... It was for the best, right..? I did what I could, right..? But... why...?! What should I do now..?"

"Maki..." I called out and reached a hand out. Maki flinched and looked at me. Her tears were marked on her cheeks as new one kept flowing. "What's wrong?" I added after.

"Rayuki..." Maki called back, but then wiped her tears quickly as she stood up and ran away. This time, I got her wrist just in time to catch her.

"What's wrong, Maki?" I asked again, in a more serious tone. "You aren't yourself."

"I don't know what part I play in everybody else's lives," Maki said out of the blue. "But when I assisted you to the infirmary, your friends called me an idiot for making you run."

"Even though it was my choice to run after you..." I muttered. "I'll go back inside and tell that person to apologize-!"

"No!" Maki screamed and grabbed hold of my wrist. I turned around and saw Maki about to cry. "You don't need to. Even though you chose to run after me, I was still at fault for making you choose to run... It's my fault everyone's mad at me. It's my fault for the trouble caused in the club. It's-"

"Not your fault!" I confronted. Maki's teary eyes widened in surprise and looked at me.

"O-Of course it's mine!" she shouted, sobbed, and fell on her knees. "I never wanted to exit this school without making any friends. I never wanted this to happen in the first place. But... the friends I just found are... I shouldn't have come here. I shouldn't have chosen to be an idol. I shouldn't have done anything in this school. By then, your club shall be at peace, and no one should've gotten hurt. No should've been-"

"Hush!" I cut her off and hugged her out of impulse. She fought, but I tried my best not to let her go. "You talk like you're against the whole world. You talk as if the world doesn't like what you do. But not when I'm around!"

"Eh?" Maki stopped struggling and looked up at me.

"Didn't I promise? I'll be your fan, no matter what happens. Your number one fan is right here, ready to accept you with open arms. Even if the whole world is against you, I'll always be cheering you on."

I hugged her tight as we stayed in the same position for seconds. Maki reacted first by wiping her tears.

"What was that just now?" she whined through hiccups. "Those was the corniest words of support I've ever heard of. And promising to be by my side is... hard to believe. In that state of yours, will you really be able to-?!"

"I'll surpass my limits just for that!" I insisted. "I might be angry right now because you stole something dear to the club, and I might be harsh, but in the end, I couldn't stay angry at you. After all, I'm your fan, and will always be." I smiled at her.

"... Gross," Maki grumbled and looked away.

"Eh? After all that air I breathed in just to tell my true feelings, and you call that gross? What's with you?" I grimaced and pulled away from the hug.

"Of course! And we're in the open halls, for pete's sake! Couldn't you have done your confession somewhere a wee bit better?"

"You were going to reject me, even if I invited you! Where else can I take an opportunity except seeing you off guard in front of the infirmary door?!"

"You have the weirdest timings ever! And here I thought you were amazing in pleasing girls just like how you were with the piano back in middle school..."

"Huh? You mean, you were there?"

"Who wouldn't know about you? You were called Guerilla Keyboard back in the days. You would pop out anywhere near Akiba. Don't tell me you also forgot middle school itself...?!"

"Wait... you mean, you remember who I was?"

"Of course. I was amazed with your piano skills back then. I couldn't forget your concert back then."

I widened my eyes as I came to realization that Maki was actually the same middle school girl whom I had admired for her piano compositions.

"Macchan... MACCHAN?!"

"Took you weeks to remember me, Rayuki," Maki complained, but hugged me after. "Too late to take back your words, right? And I can still use the composition, right?"

"O-Of course! I-If it's Macchan..." I muttered as I hugged back, and we were passionately trapped in each other's embrace.

"Yo, Minoru-kun!" President called. "I heard μ's rose their ranking by a hundred. And I must say... Their version of [Korekara no Someday] was not half-bad, and-"

"Sorry, Prez!" I interrupted as I rushed to change to casual clothes. "I'll send regards to Maki, and will report to her your comment, but I'm rushing here! Oh, and I'll be back in time for the concert, so don't worry!"

"Huh, so you really are the imperfect perfection," President commented sneering at me before I left the room.

Yeah, I was rushing for a meeting. Yes, a "meeting", not a "date". It's been weeks since that argument. Maki kept the song [Korekara no Someday] which earned the group another million views and good feedbacks, though she was never in it. She decided to never join the group for reasons she couldn't tell. μ's has also raised a rank from 999 to 501 ever since their recent video. You could say the increase of members also increased their popularity. Maki also gave me the credit of writing all of the song, which gave me a mini heart attack.

Regarding her current school, it was still in my school. My classmates threw a party at this, but were about to kill me when Maki announced that we were going out.

Oh, about the Light Music Club's upcoming concert, we were going to continue it. I compensated for the lost song by composing a new one, and assured that no one will be able to take it next time. It was entitled [Takaramonozu], which we will be preforming a few hours later after the said meeting.

I ran towards the monument near the school, where Maki and I were supposed to meet at, before eating at a café. Maki was there in her long, light blue dress and a cream-colored cardigan over it and white flats to coordiate with the cardigan. She was also wearing stockings to go with the season, along with a white scarf.

Without me taking my gaze off her, Maki said, "You're late, Rayuki. That's a fail on punctuality, you know."

I was surprised hearing about it, and denied her statement with, "Wait, Maki! I-"

"What's done is done, Rayuki," she cut me off. "Out of ten ideal personalities in my standards, you should pass at least eight. One is a fail. Let's see what else you can fail at~" she teased.

I grumbled, but gave in. "Fine," I said.

"Oh, you immediately pass the general test," Maki gasped on purpose and placed a hand in front of her gaped mouth.

"Wait. I passed?" I confirmed.

"Well, I guess you do," Maki agreed and kissed me on the cheek. "I'd go with any guy who can take a harsh girl like me." She giggled and continued. "How about you treat me to crepes? I might just give you something better than a kiss on the cheek." She smirked and looked at me with sassy eyes. "Or do you not have the guts to do so?"

I agreed, and she ran off laughing like a child. I followed behind, a hand in my pocket, the other touching the cheek which Maki kissed. She was sneaky to have done that. It was pretty much like her, though.

I mean, she's sassy. She had high standards. She's demanding. She's easily bored. She was never my type in the first place. But she's pretty. Cute. Beautiful. Delicate.

All those imperfections made Maki perfect. All those imperfections made the Maki that played into the hands of love.


	4. Magnetic Pull (Minami Kotori)

I fell in love with my own servant, when I wasn't supposed to be.

Kiyoshima Ren. 17 years old and still growing. I have natural black hair, with dyed blond streaks at some points of my hair. With this color comes my dark gray eyes. I have normal build and stamina, like most guys. I also get perfect grades in my whole time in education. Never in my whole life have I experienced failure, for I am to be the next in line to inherit the largest-running company in Japan. Some who didn't know of my position thought of me as a delinquent, because of my hair color, which was one of my main problems.

Yes, I do come from a filthy rich family. I live in a mansion with just my maids, while my parents were away fulfilling their respective occupations while all I do is go to and from school. Isn't that what scions were supposed to do?

But all the while, I go out of my own mansion to wander along Akihabara's streets, my maids guarding my back, when all I wanted to go to was a café where I could calm myself down. They insisted that I stay in the mansion, where they could serve me better food than what Akihabara offered. I rejected all those offers and went on by myself. I then headed to a random maid café, where I instantly fell in love with the moment I entered.

The interior was calming. There were vines along the wooden corners and counters of the shop. Wall plants also hung beautifully in decoration of the cream wall it was hanging from. The tables and chairs were lined perfectly. The smell was so pleasing that I could stay there as long as the smell lasted. I think the costumers were more than satisfied with their environment.

But I passed the idea aside and continued my way inside. A "maid" welcomed me and called me... "Master", was it? That aside, she greeted me in a unique voice. Very unique that it piqued my interest so much. I turned to the girl and took a good look at her. Her hair was dark gray, with a ribbon decorating her hair on the right side. The ribbon also kept a unique style of her hair. Along with her hair were her amber eyes. She was wearing a maid headband, as well as the complete uniform. She looked pretty captivating in such a uniform.

I stared at her too much, that I couldn't hear her question. She shook me slightly, which brought me back to reality.

"Master, are you alright?" she asked. "You've been staring at blank space these past few seconds."

I shook my head quickly and responded. "Ah, I'm alright, don't worry about me," I said, and laughed softly. "But anyway, table for me, please."

"Ah, this way, sir," the girl directed and led the way. I followed closely behind her until we got to the table. It was found in the corner, but I didn't have problems with it. "Here's the menu, sir," the same girl presented, and handed me the menu. "I'll be away to get you some water shortly, so please wait a bit." And she walked away.

I've had intimidating looks directed at me after she left, and I've had no clue on their reasons. Anyway, I read the menu and took interest in a cheesecake and hot chocolate. The girl came back holding a glass of clear water.

"Has Master already decided on his order?" the girl asked, and I told her what I had in mind. She nodded to this and said, "Understood. Your food shall be served soon, so please wait a bit." She then bowed and walked away. My shoulders finally relaxed after she left.

Again, people looked at me with those intimidating eyes, as if they were planning to kill. Yet again, I didn't know the reason why. Suddenly, an unknown person slid in across me.

"Ah, you one lucky chap," the person, who was a guy, started.

"Wh-What do you mean? And who are you?" I bombarded.

"Ha ha! I knew you were gonna ask that," he said. "Before anything else, I'm also from the school you attend. I'm Fujimura Kurogami, same class. Anyways, back on subject. The girl who's serving you right now is the cutest maid in Akiba, Minalisky! The personification of cute! Oh, some guys would just walk in on purpose just to get a chance to have her service them! Why, aren't you the lucky one."

"We-well..." I was about to say something, but...

"Ah, it's almost time for me to go!" Fujimura burst out, and stood up immediately. "See you in class, Kiyoshima-san."

"Ah, yes. See you tomorrow," I said, and he went off his way outside the café. Almost coincidentally, the gray-haired girl came back with a tray of my order.

"Here's your order, Master," she said happily as she placed the food on my table. "Please enjoy yourself." She then bowed, smiled, then walked away.

I looked at the food on my table; a single slice of cheesecake, along with a cup of newly-made hot chocolate. The smell of the beverage alone wafted to my nose, and I could smell its freshness.

And then I started eating it. After my first bite of the cake, I brought out my smartphone and unlocked it. I also brought out my earphones and plugged it to my phone. I then opened a music application then played the first song on my list. I then jumped through applications as I took stops to take a bite of my cheesecake.

With the phone in hand, I also took care some work of the company my parents left me with; replying to officials on appropriate things to do with certain situations, organizing some work schedules set for next month, as well as taking care of company budgets even a group of people couldn't handle.

To be honest, I was at first clueless on why my parents would make me do such work. But right then did I not care about it. It was for my being worthy to succeed the Kiyoshima bloodline, so I was to do my best.

I soon finished my work and then drank my cup of hot chocolate, which... was kind of warm right then, probably due to being there for a certain period of time untouched.

After I finished my beverage, I stood up from my seat, returned my phone to my pocket, and went out of the café. But as I was making my way, the gray-haired girl took notice of my leave and said, "Have a safe trip ahead, Master! I hope you come again!" I stood there perfectly stunned for a few seconds.

"May I ask your real name, Minalisky-san?" I asked without turning my back to her.

"Ah..." she muttered, and I heard footsteps behind me. She tapped my back, and I bent over as response to the signal. She cupped my ears with her hand and whispered, "It's Minami Kotori. Please never tell this to anybody suspicious as to make it publicized."

"Rest assured... Minami-san," I said, and straightened my posture. "You can count on me to keep your secret."

"Thank you so much," she muttered, and stood up after. She then went back to her post as she waved my goodbye.

A cute voice I couldn't possibly forget.

I exited the shop as I brought my phone out once again and contacted my assistant.

"Hello? Kiyoshima?" my assistant called. "What business do you have with me? Is it about the schedule you organized a few minutes ago? It's properly put out, and all the orders were well done."

"Ah, thanks for informing me," I replied, sighing in relief. "But it's about my search for my personal maid."

 _"You still haven't chosen someone to be your personal maid, out of 121?" my father asked. "They all seem to be carrying out their job pretty well. And all of them have fair appearances. Is that not fitting of your standards?"_

 _"I'm sorry, father," I said, "but it seems there's no one yet to pique my interest."_

 _"I see," my father muttered. "Then I'll give you permission to search all of Akihabara for someone who might be fit to be your personal maid."_

 _"Thank you, father," I politely said and ended the call as I jumped off my bed and walked to the balcony. The Akihabara skyline was just within the horizon. It's big for a search, but I was ready to conquer it for one maid._

"Oh, that subject!" my assistant realized. "So, any news about it?"

"I found just the perfect maid," I answered, in all seriousness in face and voice.

"Congratulations, Kiyoshima!" he bursted. "Just give me her name, and I will take care of the other details."

"... Just don't scout her publicly, okay?" I nervously whispered through the phone. "I made a promise with her not to spread it around."

"Sure thing," he agreed. "So? What's the name of the lucky maid?"

"Ms. Minami Kotori," I answered as I ended the phone call and continued walking back to the mansion.

In the middle of the night, while I was resting on my bed, someone knocked on my door.

"Kiyoshima-sama, Chiyoharu-sama wants your presence in the main hall," a woman's voice called me. I got up from my bed and went straight out, completely ignoring the maid who called me.

I continued to walk down the halls down the main hall, where two sets of staircases were found on my either side. Plants were laid in every corner. A table and two sofas were the centerpiece of the room.

"Oh, Kiyoshima," my assistant, Chiyoharu, greeted me upon my entry. "We've brought in that girl Minami Kotori. She was strong, so we had to use a bit of force."

He then showed me the gray-haired girl I met a few hours earlier. But this time, she was wearing a school uniform, and her hands were bound by thick rope. Her mouth was covered by a gag, too. But there were no signs of struggle. Turns out she was unconscious the whole time.

"Why did you do that?!" I exclaimed as I approached the unconscious Minami Kotori. "Hey, wake up, Ms. Minami." I untied her binds and removed the gag from her mouth.

Kotori opened her eyes, slowly but beautifully. She saw me and her eyes widened.

"Sir, please save me!" she pleaded. "Some group of mysterious people-" She stopped speaking and looked around the main hall. She saw Chiyoharu and panicked, then jumped on me. "That's one of them, sir! What's he doing here?!"

I sighed and told her, "I was the one who told him to do so."

''Eh?" Kotori gasped, pushing herself away from me. "Eh?!"

"Please forgive me for not introducing myself," I apologized. "My name is Kiyoshita Ren. From tomorrow onward, I will be your master."

"Hey, Kiyoshima..." Chiyoharu called. "Don't be so straightforward immediately just after the girl woke up. Let her think about it first, geez."

"Ummm..." Kotori seemed to call our attention, so we turned to her for what she had to say. "Did I get my mother's permission?"

"Well, she did say a few things, but as long as you aren't abused, as well as proper academic education, you can work fulltime," Chiyoharu informed, leaning on the sofa afterwards.

"With those open statements, are you sure that's not a forced deal?" I suspected.

"Oi, I can talk to and persuade people without using violence," Chiyoharu argued.

"You two, please stop arguing," Kotori slipped in the conversation. "If Mother does not mind me servicing you, then I would not mind it myself."

"... Good," I complimented. "I'll show you around the mansion tomorrow in the afternoon, so I would be relieved if you get enough rest by then. For now, please use my bedroom. It won't be long until me get you your own room, so I'd like to service you with a comfortable rest as my token of apology, for bringing you in to late at night."

"E-Eh...?! But... on your bed, out of all people, is..." Kotori reasoned.

"Care sleeping in Chiyoharu's, then?" I teased, smirking a bit.

"H-Heh...?!" Kotori turned to Chiyoharu, who was smirking as he was leaning on the sofa.

"Chiyoharu, take her to your bedroom," I told him.

"F-Fine!" Kotori shouted. "I-I'll take you up on your offer..."

"Hmph. You know the drill," I said, and walked to my room, fully confident that Kotori would follow. I led the way to my room, opened its door as well as the lights, and let Kotori in.

As expected of a common person, her jaw dropped when she viewed the interior of my room. Well, it was indeed a large room. Starting from my large king-sized bed found in the corner of the room, there were other amenities around me, such as a first aid kit, laptop, lamp, school supplies, and random files in one cabinet. Opposite to my bed was a large shelf that covered the wall it was bolted to. It was complete with reference books, which were also arranged based on the category they were in. There was also a tea table in the middle of the room, fit for two people. It was also complete with utensils and an antique vase to adorn the whole table. There were also plants in each corner of the room to keep its fresh look. My room also had a big window where pillows lay on the bottom just in case I want to sit there. Besides the furniture, the wallpaper was a grand scarlet, and the marble floor was pure white, though some areas - such as the bed and table - were carpeted with animal-printed carpets.

Who can't help looking at such a grand view?

I walked to my bed and soothed out the blankets. "You may sleep here for the moment. I assure you a harmless night," I said and turned around to look at her. "I still have some school work to do, so pleasure yourself with the bed the whole night."

"Ah, th-thank you," Kotori replied, as if she weren't listening. "I'll help myself with your bed, then..." she walked up to my bed and sat on it. She almost sank from its softness. "Whoa!" she blurted when she sank. "It's so soft! And it's fluffy, too!" She then patted the cushions. That was when she finally climbed into the bed and laid in the middle. She moved her hands up and down, as if making a snow angel. "I'll get addicted to this!"

"Hmmm, maybe I'll be ordering the same bed for you for when we get you your personal room," I spoke out my thoughts.

"R-Really?!" Kotori rose from her bed, out of sheer surprise.

"Of course," I assured. "You'll be a _personal_ maid, after all."

"Personal... maid?" Kotori asked.

"Yes, personal maid, or the head maid in the household," I started explaining. "You should be able to serve me at all times, including my business work. An assistant, of some sort. But all the while, you can get anything you can most desire, as long as you stay loyal to the household."

"... That sounds tough work, but please let me get the hang of it. I'm sure I'll be able to work properly pretty soon, but please bear with me for a while."

"Ah, no need to worry about that," I told her. "The household's oldest maid will be teaching you all that you need to know. I'll also take part in the training as well, but only as an observer."

"G-Got it," Kotori replied.

"Good. You should be resting now. You'll be working starting tomorrow, so I hope you have a good rest," I said. "I have some work to do, so please don't worry about me."

"O-Okay..." Kotori, still in her school uniform, complied and laid back down to the bed. After a few minutes, she was already fast asleep.

I sighed and went to work. Doing my homework, taking additional notes for lessons tomorrow, as well as arranging some files to be sent before the week ended. It was smooth at first, but I soon began hearing things. Not just random voices; Kotori's cute voice. Her "maid" act from this morning, up until recently; I could clearly remember how they sounded like. It was distracting enough to make me stop from what I was doing.

I decided to pause my work for a while and rest for a little bit I stood up and pressed a finger against my forehead as I walked to the bed. Kotori was sound asleep.

This was actually the first time I've been intrigued by a random girl. And a commoner at that. Not just that; she was one pretty girl. I've never seen such natural beauty before.

From too much thinking, I collapsed on the bed and ended up right beside her.

"AAAHHH!"

I woke up to that scream. I voluntarily woke up and fell off the bed by some force. I landed on my butt, but considering how low the bed was, as well as the carpet below it, the fall did not hurt that much.

"Ah, Kiyoshima-san!" a girly voice called from above, and I looked up to see who it was. Kotori bowed from the bed, and said, "I'm terribly sorry! I thought you were..." She kept on explaining the situation, but I was staring at her, deaf to what she was saying. Then I did the weirdest action I took in reply:

Laughing.

I laughed so hard it filled the whole room. I laid flat on the carpet as I laughed out loud. Tears were already forming in my eyes, but I couldn't stop laughing.

"Ki-Kiyoshima...-san?" Kotori sat there, completely clueless as to why I was laughing on a misunderstood situation.

Geez, have I gone crazy.

I finished laughing and wiped the tears in my eyes. "Oh, what a laugh," I reminisced. "Haven't had a laugh like that since forever. But, Minami Kotori, please don't misunderstand. I've no intentions towards you."

"I... I know that... I just acted out of impulse..." Kotori reasoned. "I'm sorry..."

"It's fine, it's fine," I said. "You just somehow misunderstood. It's natural to push some stranger sleeping in bed beside you." I then chuckled as I remembered that moment.

Now I remembered. I haven't laughed that much, ever since I was informed of my being heir to the throne. I realized that I was living a colorless life, just by not wearing a smile. Kotori made me realize all this, in just one morning.

Speaking of "morning"... I checked the wall clock and realized it was almost high noon. It wasn't really morning, after all.

But it wasn't like I was in a hurry. It was a Saturday, after all. I only have a few tasks left for the week, so I can manage them later on the day.

But what comes first is showing Kotori around the house and teaching her how the maidens run around working.

"Minami Kotori," I called, "It's almost time. Come with me to the dining room. Let's get breakfast... Or is it called lunch at this time..?"

"Brunch?" Kotori suggested.

"Yeah, that must be the term," I said. "Let's go? And a while after that will I show you around the household."

We went for a fair-sized meal, which had Kotori quite anxious. And after that, I ordered someone to take accurate measurements on Kotori's body for her uniform. I have arranged a design to make her distinct from the other maids. After all those preparations, I finally lead the way, reassured that Kotori would follow me.

I showed her around the house while maids were running around and keeping the house clean as ever.

I showed her the kitchen, the living room, the garden, main library, and the maid's rooms as well.

After the whole house was cleared, we were back in my room, and I was about to ask the other maids for royal milk tea, but...

"I'd like to make the tea, ummm..." Kotori volunteered, but seemed like immersed into something else. I figured that it was something about me, so I gave a response.

"Ren," I answered. "You can call me by my first name."

"Then, Ren-sama..." Kotori called out. "I'll make the tea. Please wait for me." She bowed formally and moved out.

"So she knows how to make royal milk tea, huh..." I muttered to myself. I sat quietly as I waited. A few minutes later, Kotori came back with a tray, and on it was a glass kettle with my favorite tea.

"I-I'm back..." Kotori panted as she walked towards the table. She tried carefully placed the tray on the table, though I can see the tray trembling a bit.

"C-Careful!" I reacted and helped her place the tray. "You should be less clumsy next time, though I understand this is a first for you, am I right?"

"Y-Yes..." Kotori softly answered. "Serving only one master... is new, but it's fresh. I think I'll be able to get the hang of it soon."

"I see... That's good," I complimented and nodded to her determination. "Which reminds me, how about you request something from me? I'll let them bring you anything you need."

"E-Eh...?! Th-That's too much, Ren-sama-!" Kotori argued, but I placed a finger on her lips.

"It's just Ren when it's the two of us, got it?" I ordered, smiling a bit. "If you're my personal maid, we're like best friends here. No formalities."

"O-Okay... R-Ren..." Kotori stuttered. It was actually the first time I found something like that cute. "Wi-Will you be able to... treat me to a maid café? I-I mean, if that's-"

"Fine by me," I agreed immediately. "I can reserve the whole building so it can be just the two of us inside."

"Ah, no! I-I mean, a normal treat... A d-date... if you'd prefer..."

"... I see. Sure," I obliged, stood up and walked towards the door. I opened it and held out a hand to Kotori. Surely I've trained hard to court women. "Shall we go now, then?"

"Eh?!" Kotori blushed and stood there in her position, frozen like ice. Soon enough, she moved, took my hand, and soon were we on our way to a maid café.

While walking, I asked Kotori, "So what would you recommend?"

"Ah, I know some rumors of a high-rate maid-café just a few minutes walk from here. Shall we go there?" Kotori excitedly suggested.

"Sure," I agreed smiling at her, and let her guide the way to that café. Soon, we were in front of the door, ready to enter. We went through the door, and I gotta say: the interior design wasn't half-bad. I knew the flooring had mahogany lining, and the walls were painted cream and designed Victorian-style. Hanging flowers lined up the walls and vines ran through the counters. The tables and chairs were placed symmetrically and designed in a classical way. People were at random tables, being entertained by "maids".

We were attended to by a random maid, who greeted us and guided us to a table for two. We sat there and were handed a menu. The amid excused herself as she went to get water.

I looked at the menu and saw so many plain dishes any café would normally put in.

"Oooh! This crepe looks so yummy in the picture! I wonder if it will look the same when served?" Kotori commented. "Oh! And this omurice is neatly done! Oh, and this..."

I kept listening to her comments on the dishes until the maid came back to take our orders. I went for a tiramisu and a latté, while Kotori took carbonara and a ice cream vanilla shake for herself. The maid took the menu, bowed and went away.

"So you really took the most expensive ones in the menu, didn't you?" I interrogated, and smirked at her.

"Eh? I'm not allowed to?" Kotori asked while starting to get nervous.

"Ha ha, it's okay! I don't mind. In the end, it's you who wants this, so I'll oblige to everything you want," I said.

Kotori stayed silent and looked at me intently with her amber eyes. They were shiny and excited, but I could see loneliness in them. I never told her that, because our food has arrived. The maid told us to enjoy our food and soon went away to entertain another costumer.

"So, what do you want to do next?" I asked Kotori as we walked along the sidewalks.

"I want a big stuffed llama! Ummm... I mean, if I have the authority to..." Kotori answered.

"Consider that done," I assured. "We already prepared your favorite items in your room, from stuffed llamas to sewing kits. Everything you want."

"... I see... Then, a teddy bear from the arcade!" Kotori suggested.

"Eh? Why not let me buy it?" I asked.

"I feel better joy when I work hard to get it... I guess," Kotori reasoned, seemingly thinking hard.

"Well, if that's what you want, then let's have fun in the arcade! I believe I'm a pro at these kinds of games," I boasted and cracked my fingers before we entered the world of games.

"Ah, that was fun!" Kotori happily said as we went out of the building. "This teddy bear is so cute! We did a good job at that crane, didn't we, Ren-san?"

"Yeah, I guess we did," I answered and faked a chuckle. It took me lots of tries before I got to pick out the limited edition teddy bear from the crane game. But I got the gist of it and took away the plush, then gave it to Kotori as a trophy won from a battle. Besides the crane, we tried lots of others, including the dance thing, air hockey, even your usual fighting games. Kotori seemed to be inexperienced with gaming, but she was having fun, and that was all I needed to see. "By the way," I continued. "The day is ending. How about we go home now? Your uniform should be ready."

"Eh?! That fast?!" Kotori gasped, as if she has seen an alien in front of her.

"Of course. You can't expect any more from Chiyoharu," I announced with pride.

"... Eh?! Chiyoharu-kun prepared my uniform?!" Kotori screamed. Well, she didn't know how the household ran, so of course she didn't know Chiyoharu can sew.

"Ha ha, let's go meet him. I'm sure he'll be waiting for us," I urged, and Kotori nervously followed.

When we got home, Chiyoharu was in the main entrance, five maids surrounding him. One of them had a gift-wrapped box, and I knew what was inside at first glance.

"You sure got the best of your date, huh, Ren-chan?" Chiyoharu teased. "Ah, Minami Kotori. Did Ren feel good?"

"Chiyoharu! Cut Kotori off your dirty jokes, will you?" I covered. "Get inside Kotori. Claim that box over there." Kotori silently did what I told her to do, and went inside without any other word. I followed, but knocked Chiyoharu's chest before doing so. "Thanks, man," I said.

"No prob, bro," Chiyoharu replied, and waved a hand goodbye. "Tomorrow is your personal maid's first day! Make sure she falls for you, okay?"

"Tch. I told you already, she's not someone I want to do something like that to. Plus, she's a pure maiden. I would not violate it," I reasoned before going straight to Kotori.

"Ah, Ren-sama," Kotori greeted after finding me. She seemed to have been leaning on wall, waiting for me.

"Kotori..." I greeted back. "Your first day of service will be tomorrow, huh..."

"... Yeah," Kotori agreed, though I noticed some hesitation in her voice.

"You... still aren't up for it, are you?" I asked to confirm it.

"To be honest, if Chiyoharu-san never went through kidnapping me, I wouldn't have agreed to it. All the more when I heard the one I was about to service was rich. And... I... don't want to be spoiled. I never wanted any of this. I kind of hoped my mother would insist I get back. I miss my friends back home. I feel isolated here. But somehow..." She paused and looked up at me. "There's something holding me back. The thought of missing my friends and leaving you is... kind of hurting here." Then she pointed at her chest.

"Kotori..." I muttered. "Kotori, if you want to go back, if you don't want to take the risk this job might bring, you can still turn back." I smiled sadly at her. "Let me tell you that you are a splendid girl." Then I hugged her. I never considered the thought of hugging someone I mat last night, but Kotori seemed like an exception. Like some strong gravity was trying to pull me towards her. It was painful to think that I was hugging someone I've spent such a short time with, but it was worth it. "I'm sure your mother, your friends, your school miss you too. They're much more important to you than me, a singular person. I'll miss you, but please remember-"

"Ren-kun," Kotori interrupted, then hugged back. I wasn't expecting it or anything, but my heart beat fast once I felt her hands crawl around my waist. "Ren-kun, I would love to service you. Yes, my family and friends are important, and I love my part-time job as maid at a café, but it seems... there's a magnet that pulled me to you. You're soft, warm, and kindhearted. Unlike the costumers I've serviced, you seemed like the one I want to service longer. Not the gifts you but me, the food you treat me. I just feel like I would do anything for you. So please. Let me stay."

Kotori's words slowly burned themselves into my head. I never would have expected her to say such. But I was touched by them. With that voice, I was captivated more than I imagined.

"Of course," I permitted, hugging Kotori tighter. "Now, let's go to your room. A little gift I would like to present you before anything." I patted her back, and we separated from each other's embrace. I then walked through the halls, and invited Kotori to walk beside me. We soon reached her room, which was exactly beside mine. I picked the master key from my suit and unlocked the door. I opened the door and revealed its interior to Kotori.

It was a large room with pink, polka-dot walls, and white, wavy, mahogany designs along the edge. The white ceiling brought more shine into the room. There was a king-sized mattress covered with pink complete with fluffy pillows and stuffed llamas on the heading. A window sat behind it, showing a view on the night sky. As for the others, there was a giant stuffed llama in one corner, and a small shelf opposite of the bed. There was also a study table beside the shelf, and a hidden closet seemed connected to something... There was a sewing machine beside the bed, with a full supply of cloth and threads, along with equipment for every task. And the floor was completely carpeted with pink-dyed fur.

I dropped my jaw at the sight. It was a girly and the perfect idealistic room I expected. I looked at Kotori for a reaction, but the girl was not beside me anymore. She was already bouncing on the bed while hugging the llama and the teddy bear we got from the arcade.

"Waaah, this is just as soft as Ren-kun's bed!" she exclaimed. "And so many llamas! Uwaaah!"

I smiled and leaned on the door frame as I watched Kotori wander around her room. At the very least, she was happy about it.

She let go of her stuffed animals and ran up to me. I stood straight up to meet her. She kissed my cheek and said, "Thank you so much, Ren-kun. Good night."

"Good night to you too, Kotori," I greeted back. "I recommend you wake up before 8. Meet me at my room. Knock on my door four times. I should know it's you."

"Got it," she obliged, and I waved a hand goodbye.

I walked back to my room and straight to my bed. I jumped on my bed and stuffed my face in the pillows. I thought about what happened today and smiled at every time I remembered Kotori's face.

My personal maid- no, my best friend. Yes, my best friend will be knocking on my door tomorrow and greet me with her cute "Good Morning".

[To be continued.]


	5. Fighting For (Yazawa Nico)

[Warning: May contain explicit words and scenes. Read at own risk.]

I never thought that the girl I once hated was the one I'll risk my life for.

Chiyoharu Koutarou. 18 years old and in my third year of high school. I've lived as an heir to the Chiyoharu clan, next to my father. Of course, that would require 17 years of living with stinky, tough, and foul-mouthed yakuzas around me. That somehow influenced me, though with my father's guidance, I became the proper yakuza my family expected me to be.

I have blue short, spiky hair as well as black eyes. I'm quite small for a height of 5'3", and have the build of just about any teenager you might see. I walk around town wearing a blue hoodie with a white shirt underneath, but when I'm yakuza mode, I wear my whole set of suits. Tuxedo, long sleeves, red tie, black slacks, and leather shoes. Yes. I only have two clothes in my closet, so what?

I also work for the Kiyoshima household, where I myself could earn a real profit. This job was to assist Kiyoshima Ren in almost everything he does, though I was more than an assistant to him. We soon became friends and hung out some other day.

But enough about me. That story I'm about to tell is about me and this girly girl who has always been my reason for fighting.

 _This story started back when I was in first year high school. I was walking down an alley when I saw a shadow headed towards me. The shadow revealed a young girl with black hair tied into twin tails by red ribbons. She seemed to be in a hurry, heard in her heavy breathing. But suddenly, two aggressors were actually chasing her._

 _The girl passed by me and pushed me to the side as the aggressors were nearing her. When they got in front of me, they paused there._

 _"Hey, kid! Why'd you let the girl through, huh?!" one asked, who revealed to be a built man wearing a tank top and camouflage jeans as well as army boots._

 _"What can I do? The girl pushed me away!" I reasoned, because it was the absolute truth._

 _"Ah, the girl is getting far away! Time to use this..." the other one said. He was a skinny one wearing a loose t-shirt and jeans, as well as sneakers to pair with his style. In accordance with what he said, he pulled out a pistol and loaded it with bullets before aiming at it the girl._

 _"The hell are you doing?!" I shouted, threatened from the object._

 _"Don't you worry kid. I'm licensed, and I'm just aiming for the legs, geez! Now, outta my way if you don't wanna get shot!" the skinny one shoved me and aimed his gun. The bulky guy was smirking to this and held me down to assure that I don't interfere._

 _I looked at the girl, who was frozen in place when she saw the weapon aimed at her. The sight gave me a fit of anger, which lit a fire in my eyes._

 _"Oh, no you don't," I threatened and tied my legs around the bulky guys left thigh, and when the guy looked at his thigh from under, I bumped my head with his, so he sat up and pressed his forehead. I stood up myself, so the skinny guy can't aim straight for the legs._

 _"You brat! I'll beat you up!" he bellowed and charged at me. He was about to go for the grab when I ducked and swept him off his feet with a spin kick. I forgot the fact that we were both down and gave the guy a totally open space to shoot._

 _"No!" I shouted, and lunged at the skinny guy before he pulled the trigger. The guy missed what he was about to shoot, but managed to graze the girl's arm. I looked at the girl, who tumbled over the ground while pressing her arm._

 _I got angered by the scene and took the gun from the skinny guy. I loaded it and aimed it at the bulky one, then shot him in the right ankle. The guy shouted in pain, but no one came to his rescue. I then pointed the gun at the skinny one, ready to aim for the head._

 _"Wh-Who the hell are you...?!" the skinny guy asked, totally shaken up in fear._

 _"Oh, you don't wanna know, brother," I threatened, and shot another bullet an inch to his left. He shook violently, and passed out soon enough. I confiscated the magazine and tossed the gun to his chest. I pocketed the rest of the bullets and walked away._

 _I realized the girl was still there, but she passed out for some reason, and her arm was still bleeding, so I took pity and carried her back home._

 _"Oooh! Young master has brought home a girl!" one of the members of the clan exclaimed when he saw me carrying the girl inside._

 _"Shut up! I'm just gonna treat her wound, feed her, and send her back to her own home, that's all!" I denied. "Don't tell the others and bring me a first aid kit."_

 _"U-Understood!" the guy saluted and ran back to get what I asked. While waiting, I looked properly at the girl. She was wearing a school uniform, though the left sleeve of the jacket was also grazed from the gunshot. The arm received quite a large wound, which made me impatient._

 _The guy brought back the kit, and I started treating her. I took off both her jacket and polo, which revealed only the sleeveless undergarment, so it wasn't that much on an issue._

 _I cleaned the wound first before sewing it up and wrapping a bandage around it. It was always the way I treated those with grazed wounds. Yeah, sewing through the skin is a given. It's to prevent the flesh from tearing apart._

 _After pinning the roller bandage, I stood up and backed away I saw the result. It was clean enough, but then I thought it would be hideous in her school, and both blazer and polo were damaged, so I decided to sew them._

 _After a few hours, both clothing were patched up, but would still look ugly on her, so I also decided to hide that, which brought me to the idea of a blazer. I thought pink would suit her, so I decided to knit it myself. With the supply of yarn, it was enough to do._

 _It took me another hour to finish knitting it, so I decided to put it on her. The polo first before the blazer, then the jacket. I then picked her up and laid her down the bed. I looked her sleeping form, and brought an unusual comfort in me. That was why I also decided to cook for her._

 _I went to the kitchen to cook her a plate of curry, so with the prepared materials, I began cooking. Without knowing her tastes, there was no way I could make just one. I had to make two; one mild, and one spicy. After finishing -which took me almost half-an hour-, I prepared two plates and served the curry. I left the leftovers with the rest of the members, considering it was almost dinnertime._

 _I went to the room where the girl was resting. She was still asleep, so I waited for her to wake up on her own so that I could sit her up and feed her._

 _She woke up quite immediately. Her eyes blinked open, and she used her right arm to rub her eyes. New fact for that one. She turned her head to look around._

 _"I see you're awake," I casually said. "Dinnertime. We have curry."_

 _"... Uhhh, where am I..?" The girl asked before she saw me. "... Eh?! The scary guy back in the alley! What happened?!" I remembered the scene back then, and I accidentally showed the girl my dark side. She abruptly sat up, but realized her arm was injured._

 _"Ah, sorry. I was just so angry at them for hurting such a cute girl," I apologized and reasoned. "Anyways, refrain from using your left arm too much. It'll hurt real bad. Now," I said and helped her sit up, "Let me feed you. Would you like mild curry or spicy?"_

 _"As long as it's food, please," she agreed, so I decided to pick the spicy one and fed her with that one. She had her first bite of the food. Surprisingly, the girl was sweating while chewing. Maybe it was too spicy..._

 _"... This is spicy, yet so tasty!" the girl commented, her eyes shining. "How do you make it?!"_

 _"Well, it's just a simple recipe, but let me get you in with that one," I answered. "I'll write the recipe and procedure down later. Or would you let me teach you? I mean, once you're injury's gone."_

 _"Any method is fine," the girl said and smiled._

 _"I see... After all this, I never got to ask you name. What is it?" I asked._

 _"Oh, if you insist, then I guess I should introduce myself." the girl closed her eyes and prepared her hands. She formed the rock sign with both hands and raised them high. "I am Nico Nico- Ouch! What was that for?!"_

 _"I asked for your name, not a concert," I said, after flicking her forehead. "You're not an idol, nor fit to become one."_

 _"What did you say? Of course I am, and I will hit number one in the charts! Just you watch! I'll assure you that one!"_

 _"Of course you will. And I already told you not to use your left arm voluntarily. Now, just rest for the night. You need it. Tomorrow, I'll send you home."_

 _"A-Ah, thank you," the girl replied. "I'm Yazawa Nico. I'll be in your care for the rest of the night." She was about to raise her left arm to shake hands with me, but realized that arm had no function in the moment, so she raised her right hand instead. I did the same and we shook hands._

 _"I'll be calling lights off soon," I announced as I stood up. "Be sure to sleep by then."_

 _"Yeah," Nico obliged, smiled at me, and said, "Good night."_

 _"Good night," I greeted before exiting the room. I closed the sliding door before me and sighed. It was a day indeed. I sat down before the doorway, and pretty much fell asleep there._

I shook the memory off my head as I walked down the leveled road. I didn't want to remember what happened later that time, because that thought pissed me off.

 _Ungrateful bitch,_ I mentally cursed as I remembered her face.

Right now, I was told by Ren that he has found someone to be his personal maid. _Huh, rich kids,_ I thought to myself as I remembered that. He gave me a name, so before I went out to get her, I sent out a research on her profile. I saw her address and was now on the way. Once in front of her house, I knocked on the door. When the door opened, an adult woman had appeared.

"What do you need?" the woman asked.

"Ummm... I want to talk to Minami Kotori," I saud casually.

"And who might you be? I don't remember seeing you before," she continued to ask.

 _The hard part,_ I thought, and gulped. "Ah, I'm... her... newly-made friend. I live in Akihabara, and we don't meet each other that much." A stupid excuse, but I like the way I put it.

"I see... What do you need from her?" the woman asked once again.

"You see, I... signed her up for a big fashion contest. I believed she would fit the requirements, so I suddenly signed her up. But... she has to be away for the preparations. I believe you wouldn't mind if I... borrowed her for a few weeks, right?"

"... What? She's supposed to be away for weeks? She's gonna miss school!"

"Ah, you need not worry about that. It is assured that she is tutored well, and the tutors are advanced in teaching high school students. There are also professional fashion designers to help her with costume designing. And if she herself decides to take up fashion there, I'll let you know. Is that okay?" If I tell Kiyoshima this, he'll burst! I gulped nervously after I spit out the excuses.

"Wow, that's a big offer for such a contest. But as her mother," she said, "this might become an experience for Kotori. Let me get her. Please wait inside." She then

"Please do. And thanks," I replied and stepped inside the household. "Pardon my intrusion," I whispered, took off my shoes, and looked around. It was pretty a normal house for someone who piqued Ren's interest.

"Ah, it's you," a cute but teenage voice called from behind. I stood up and turned around to see Kotori, still in uniform. It was... pretty familiar, but I couldn't make up where I last saw it.

"Ah, Minami-san," I greeted. "Would you mind if I-?"

"Mother already told me everything," she interrupted. "Of course I'll take up the offer."

"Ah, sorry for putting you up to this," I said and led the way outside. "I wish you a good evening, Minami-san's mother."

"Be careful out there, you two," she advised, and waved goodbye. "I'll miss you, Kotori."

"Me too, Mother!" Kotori called back and waved goodbye. We exited the household and began walking.

We did walk, and would be sure to reach Ren's mansion in a few minutes, but Kotori was lagging from time to time.

"What are you think about, Minami-san?" I asked her.

"Ah, it's nothing," she denied. "... To be honest, I met someone in a maid café. Black hair with blond streaks. Black eyes... huh, I wonder if I can meet him again..."

"In love, I'm sure," I answered straightforwardly. "And... I might know who this person is." _It's Kiyoshima, after all,_ I thought to myself.

"Really?! Do you know where he is?" she enthusiastically asked, clapping her hands together and looking at me with pleading eyes.

"Let's see..." I muttered. "Sorry for doing this, but..." I pinched her nape, and she fell unconscious. "Really sorry for doing this one..." I tied her hands and feet then gagged her mouth. I carried her in my arms as I walked towards Ren's mansion.

After that talk with Ren, Kotori went to his room. Ren gave me an unusual look and told me that my work was done for that day. I then excused myself and went outside. I wore my hat and coat on the way past the gates.

"Free at last," I muttered and stretched my arms upward. "But that uniform, though... Where did I last see it?" I asked myself as I walked down the silent night road. I was headed home, but I heard nimble footsteps getting louder. Emerged from the alley was a girl, who seemed to be chased. She was still in her uniform, but with a cardigan under her blazer, and she was carrying a school bag with her. The girl, who stopped for a moment, also looked around. She seemed to have saw me, and ran up to me.

"Save me, please!" she cried desperately. "Those guys with guns are chasing me! They-!" And she screamed at the sight of them.

"Oi, little girl! We just wanted to have fun! Come on, we'll put our guns away if you just accept our offer!" one guy said.

"No way! I know what you're up to!" she yelled at them.

"Then you leave us no choice," another guy chuckled and aimed a gun at her. It felt like something on the past, but with a different setting. Now I was able to really save a girl.

The girl screamed and ran away from me, but I took hold of her arm, and locked her in my arms as the guys started shooting a few bullets. One hit me in the left shoulder blade, and the other hit the joint of my right shoulder. It hurt so bad, and I bellowed in pain, but luckily I was wearing a bulletproof vest that time. I maintained my composure and took out my own gun. The guys took aim, but my gun was certain kill.

"Screw you guys!" I shouted and shot them immediately, for my gun was already loaded. The first bullets hit their thighs. They tripped and fell face-first into the ground. They couldn't do anything at the time, so I let go of the girl and staggered to the guys while aiming a gun at them.

"You bastards!" I shouted at them. "You bastards deserve to die here! Hitting on girls as you wish... What kind of men are you?! If you want a girl to like you, how about you start acting like real men, and treat women like one of your kind?!" I shouted between gunshots. They two of them were already shaking in fear, but I kept on scolding them.

"S-Stop already!" the girl herself shouted from behind me. She also pulled on my arm to stop me from shooting anymore. "I-It's fine, they already stopped! Please-!"

"And you!" I shouted at her and faced her. I realized that my back was already bleeding out so much, that I passed out mid-sentence.

I woke up in a heavily lighted room. Too bright that I had to close my eyes again. I tried to cover them with my arm, but I realized that I was still injured from the gunshot.

I also saw some roller bandages wrapped around my chest and right shoulder. It was soft to the touch, it actually felt good to wrapped in them.

After checking on my injuries, I looked around me. I realized that I was in a hospital. The open window, the desk with a basket of fruits over it beside the bed I was on, a white curtain around the bed, as well as a big bouquet of daisies rested beside me. It wasn't the best wake I had, but it was, at the very least, comfortable.

I slowly sat up to take a good look around. There was also one person resting with only her head on the bed. It was the girl I saved that night. I took a good look at her and remembered.

She was the same girl I saved two years ago.

The thought somehow got my heart racing. She was the one I couldn't get out of my head. Well, they were mostly negative thoughts, but to be honest, she was stuck in head for those two whole years.

Yazawa Nico... was it?

From too much staring, I realized she was already awake. She yawned and rubbed the sleep off her eyes before looking around. Her eyes came to life when she saw me.

"So you're awake," she noticed. "I spent all night making that dress the guy requested from you that I fell asleep right here. It wasn't easy-"

"Wait," I interrupted. "Someone mailed me?"

"Yeah," she confirmed and brought out my phone from her bag. "Here."

"You better not have explored my phone," I muttered and unlocked my phone. There was one message I couldn't have read before. It was from Ren, who sent a design for a maid uniform. I was supposed to be sewing that one, but considering my injury, I couldn't have done it. And it had a due time, which was set that afternoon.

"I took the job instead, and sewn the dress myself. You could say it was average," she said, and picked up a wrapped uniform from the table. She unwrapped it and unraveled the dress. I looked at the image, and the real one. Exactly the same. Even the back side was the same as the requested dress.

"H... How did you..? This dress is complicated, even for professionals!"

"Hmph. Don't you believe in me? I have been trying to learn how to sew ever since that incident."

"Wait, what incident?" I suddenly asked.

"Don't you remember? Two years ago, when you saved me from two guys. You patched up my polo and blazer, even knit me a cardigan. Ever since then, I wanted to pay back the favor, so I also tried studying fashion. I also asked the guys in your house on how you cooked your curry, so... I think I'm a bit good at it now." Nico folded the dress and placed on the foot of the bed. "... You see, I never forgot the time you saved me that day. Had you never interfered, I would have been done for. I really, really, really wanted to show my gratitude, but I couldn't do it, because you did me too big a favor. And here, you saved my life a second time. I... don't know what to do to pay you back." She then covered her face and started crying.

"Oi, Yazawa..." I called out. "I... don't need anything besides a simple thanks. That was... all I ever desired from you."

"Eh..?" Nico sounded and looked up to me.

"I got mad when you went out of the house without leaving a note or something," I explained. "I thought you weren't... grateful for what I did. I couldn't get you off my head, though. I just... hoped that one day, I can meet you again and then kidnap you and hold you for ransom. Sell you to the other yakuza clans, maybe."

"Wh-Wha-?!" Nico stuttered. "That's what I get for not saying thanks?! What kind of person are you?!"

"Hmmm... you have a point," I said. "No one would want a girl with a flat chest, won't they?"

"Wh-What are you saying, all so suddenly?!" Nico shouted. "You're gross! And I'm not... flat chested! I'm gonna prove it to you right here, right-!"

"Stop," I ordered, trying to stifle a laugh. "You took me seriously, and you're really going for the kill?! Hahahaha!" I then continued laughing on the spot. After some time, I stopped laughing and cleared my throat before saying, "Anyways, I've gotta deliver this to that bastard. No point staying here. Come with me, Yazawa." I slipped off of my bed and raised my arms. Then I clicked my tongue as I felt pain in my right shoulder.

"The doctors told me that you need further treatment on your right shoulder," Nico informed. "It will remain dysfunctional until the operation. I think you should-"

"Tell them I don't need it," I interrupted. "Just bandaging it is fine."

"... Can't be helped," Nico sighed. "By the way, they disposed your bulletproof jacket. Will that pose a problem?"

"I don't need that one," I immediately answered. "Let's get the hell out of this building, yeah?"

"... Yeah," Nico obliged, and we started walking side by side, out of the hospital. We admitted ourselves from the counter and told them to leave the payments to the clan. We then headed straight for Ren's mansion, which was a twenty-minute walking distance from where we were.

I made the normal appearance and handed Ren the uniform he requested. He seemed to be contented with it and gave me a smile.

 _Of course_ , I thought. _He hasn't heard of what happened last night._

He went inside his own home and guided his maid-in-training further inside.

"... Where the hell is my credit?!" Nico yelled after the coast was clear. She has been standing beside me the whole time.

"He obviously wouldn't see you, dumbass," I said with a straight face. "With your small stature and small chest, who would?"

"Look who's talking, idiot!" Nico argued. "You just happen to be two inches taller than me, and that's it!"

"But you in your school uniform would stand out less. My suit and tie are perfect for these kinds of households," I bragged.

"... Tch. I'm going home," Nico announced and slung her bag over her shoulder. She walked past the gates, but I caught hold of her.

"Let me come with you this time," I insisted. "It's almost nighttime, so I don't want you to get regressed like last night."

"... If you want to do it so badly, then I won't mind letting you," Nico teased, smirking at me.

I comically popped a nerve and muttered, "Annoying..." but still came with her on her way home.

As we walked down the road, I saw some men gathering on the cross path. They kept on coming until they completely blocked the way. We also decided to take a detour, but some men were also swarming the alley. We also tried going back, but some men also blocked the path. I then realized that we were completely surrounded.

"Hoooh? Chiyoharu and his girlfriend, I see," one man pushed through the crowd. "Has Daddy found you a wife yet?"

He was a heavily built man, as tall as a telephone booth. He was also tanned to the core, and his muscles rippled through his tank top. With camouflage pants to go with it, and standing spiky hair, he seemed like your usual foreigner macho man.

"... Who are you?" I questioned, a strange fire boiling my blood.

"Oh, just some random clan leader passing by," he answered casually. "By the way, I heard you interfered with the kidnap of Yazawa Nico?"

"I'm sorry, mister clan leader, and I'm sure we'll speak again, but can you, like, give way to us? If it's from the Chiyoharu clan you speak of, then I guess you got the wrong person. There are many candidates for the heir, so there may be a little misunderstanding-" I tried to explain, but was interrupted.

"Stop giving us your crappy lies," the leader bellowed. "We all bear witness to how you shot two of our members."

In a situation where I couldn't lie about it, all I could do then was point out what happened. "If you bear witness to it, why don't you tell me the reason you want Yazawa Nico?"

"Oh, just so you know, Yazawa right there is a famous school idol," the leader informed. "She values more yen than you could ever dream of. Hundreds of millions of yen. Highest bid is a billion! Who wouldn't aim for such money?"

"She's just a high school student! What does that have to do with her being a school idol? If you faggots want a billion yen, you can just earn it the normal way! Don't-!"

"We want it fast. Cash flow these days are sluggish. If we are to sell this girl, we'd be swimming in fortune! Oh, how about this? If you hand her over, we split the money-"

"Don't fuck with me! Negotiations won't work if you're dealing with me. I won't hand her over, so why not let us past?"

"Oh, you've done it, kid. Good thing we have prepared something right here!" He signaled his team on something, and after some shuffling in the back, one of them came out with an unconscious body. He looked rag with ripped clothing, slash wounds, grazes, and a beat up face. I almost couldn't recognize him until they brought him closer to the right side of the madman.

"Dad!" I yelled, but I was sure he couldn't hear me. I took a step towards him, but the leader took out a gun with his right hand, loaded it, and pointed it at me.

"It's your daddy, all right," he confirmed. "But this is the real negotiation. If you hand her over, I'll give you back your precious daddy. If you don't..." He pointed the gun at Dad, and raised it immediately with a loud "BANG!"

"No!" I shouted and reached out a hand, my face in total misery. The man laughed at this, and so did his gang.

"How childish can you be, Chiyoharu?!" the leader teased. "But if you don't hand over the girl, you daddy is as good as dead."

"Fuck you!" I raised my voice at the man before me, and used my right arm to reach for my gun, but realized that it was dysfunctional.

"Well, who's gonna get fucked today?" The leader and his people raised their weapons, ranging from iron poles to pistols to shotguns. They were all aimed at me and Nico, and I looked around in horror as they approached us. Nico was frozen in place, her eyes darkening as if she was knocking at death's door.

"Tche," I cursed. I pressed my teeth together and called out my only option; the only choice I never even wanted: call out the others from the clan. "CHIYOHARU!"

A few seconds later, the back row went crazy as one of our own members smacked them in the head with an iron pipe. After a few cleared people, he looked at me and gave me a thumbs-up.

A few more ambushes occurred, until a few more were fighting. My brethren soon left running away from possible survivors, but one thing was for sure:

It's game over for this clan.

To make sure the leader was not gonna do anything, I readied a gun and pointed it at him. "Nico, run!" I shouted at the frozen girl, and Nico responded with a nod. She then took a step towards the right alley.

"Oh, no, you don't!" the clan leader reacted and pointed a gun at her. I took a firm stance and readied myself to pull the trigger.

"If you threaten to shoot that gun, I'll send you somewhere worse than hell!" I threatened him.

"And if you shoot that gun, I'll still have enough time to kill that girl! I won't go down easily!" he shot back and smirked at me.

I looked at Nico, who was also looking at me. Her face was pale from the current situation, from the fact that there was a gun pointed at her. I clicked my tongue and faced the bastard.

"Then shoot me instead! Let her go, just have it all on me!" I offered, but a gun was already pointed at me. The leader had another one equipped at his left hand.

"Shut up. Forever," the leader said, and shot the other gun at me. Luckily, the gun lacked aim, and missed by an inch. I took the opportunity to spin to the left and disarm the gun on his right hand. I took hold of his arm and held it forcefully behind his back. To counter it, he pointed the pistol on Nico, but my legs were long enough to kick the gun and send it into the air. Once the leader was weaponless, I swept his feet and laid him flat into the ground. I pressed a foot on his back to force his arm further back.

A few of my brethren came back and pointed guns at him, ready to shoot.

"I don't need anything here. Just get the girl to safety. I'm okay here," I ordered, and they seemed reluctant, but some were already on the act, and surrounded Nico. They soon started walking down the road, leaving me with the leader and one of my brethren.

I pulled on the leader's arm, and he bellowed in pain. I pointed a gun at him and gave him a real pain the back.

I was too lost in it that I almost felt no pain when I was shot in the abdomen. I felt nothing when I touched my abdomen, and my head started to clear.

I heard someone calling my name. I also heard "Young Master! Young Master!" Must be my brethren. But the loudest of them all was the name "Koutarou! Koutarou!" It was a... girl's voice.

I might have heard whimpers, an evil laugh, and two gunshots. One after the other, I heard them. My hearing blurred. My eyesight also blurred, slowly but constantly.

The last thing I wanted to look at was Nico. She was calling my name while being pulled away by my brethren. I felt someone carrying me and running with me in their arms.

That was when my vision turned black.

The same tragedy happened a third time. I was sure of that.

But I was asking myself how in the world I was still conscious as if I survived that gunshot.

I never had the strength to open my eyes, but I could let out a small moan. I heard my own moan, but most of what happened after, I have no comprehension on that one.

I heard nothing else besides my own regular breathing. But slowly did my hearing returned, and I heard panicked voices and tiled footsteps. My consciousness came back slowly, and I soon got to open my eyes.

It was slow progress yet again, considering the lights illuminating the room. I soon opened them fully, but someone covered my eyes.

"Keep them shut, Koutarou," a male voice dictated. "This is me, Ren."

"... Ren," I called out. "Did you die too? Are we in heaven now?"

"Don't joke about death, Chibi Gangsta," Ren scolded.

"Please... I'm suffering here. Don't call me Chibi Gangsta," I groaned.

"Yeah, yeah," Ren casually waved the subject off. "You just saved a girl's life, in exchange for your own. How does it feel to survive?" he teased after.

"What the hell, Ren? Don't joke about death, especially mine," I threatened. "... But yeah. It felt like something new. Like-"

"Anyways, a girl passed by here to look at your condition," he informed. "When I asked how you two were related, she told me that she was the one you saved a few months ago."

"... Yazawa, huh..." I muttered to myself. She was the girl I saved a few months ago.

A few months ago...

"WHAT?!" I jumped and jolted up from the bed. My eyes were wide open. But then, i realized that I had an injury in my abdomen. I clutched my stomach and laid back into the bed, now in a fetal position. "God dammit, I was here for a few months?"

"I told you not to rush yourself," Ren chided. "But yes, you seem to have saved the girl from something bad. She told me she was grateful of what you did to save her, and she started crying. She also told me to pass you this letter." He then brought out a piece of paper and gave it me.

"Ah, thanks," I said and received the letter. I unfolded the paper and read the message.

 _Dear Chiyoharu Koutarou,_

 _You're a terrible person. The worst person I might have met. Making me worry all this time is the worst thing you could've done. Why am I even worrying about you? Do you even know how many months I've been worrying about you?_

 _But worrying wasn't the biggest regret. Once I heard you survived that shot, I felt relieved. Something was finally off my burden. I could finally forget about you. Or so I thought._

 _Damn it, I couldn't. Even after I've become a super idol I was supposed to be. You were, after all, the person who sacrificed his own life for the sake of another's._

 _Right now, I'm with other aspiring idols on the way to stardom. This is what I've decided on. It was my dream to become an idol, after all. I hope you can cheer me on from the audience. But..._

 _Never mind. You're in your pitiful state in the same bed in the same room in the same hospital. In the very least, watch my performance over the internet. Watch me as I fulfill my dream and the promise we agreed on two years ago._

 _Get well soon, Koutarou. I hope we can meet again. And by that time, you should be heads over heels for me. And if you ever propose, I'll gladly reach my hand out._

 _I love you, after all._

 _Again, get well soon, my prince._

 _Sincerely yours,_  
 _Yazawa Nico_

I stared at the written message for a few seconds before bringing it down and looking up at the ceiling. I didn't know how to respond to the letter, especially the last part.

She loves me? What was that? An idol can't be seen with someone she loves, right?

But I would love to take her up on her offer. Maybe, when she graduates. A few more months. I'll be able to meet her again, after all.


End file.
